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• Lots of curious notions put forth in this thesis. I'd suggest that "ethical porn" starts when those who produce it provide a safe work environment, provide performers with residuals, and follow the laws of the land. Piracy is wrong but it comes long after all the other models of business ethics have been tossed out the window.

  The laughable suggestion that more people paying for porn would lead to producers paying performers more is dismissible on the face of it. Look at all those years the industry raked in wild profits yet fought every attempt to pay more, offer basic health insurance & benefits, or otherwise protect those in front of the camera. Likewise with the credit card to prevent underage kids from watching given how many ways there are around that and the unethical billing practices of all too many companies.

  And if one of the most common questions you are asked is “How can I be sure what I’m watching was ethically produced?”, a BS statement on the face of it, you are the first person in history to make that laughable claim. The whole concept of ethically produced porn flies in the face of the term in part for the reasons mentioned above. How many producers get shooting permits, follow all laws (no shooting in public, following OSHA requirements, giving performers real choices instead of the "our way or the highway" approach, etc etc), and ensure that performers get a fair share of the profits? When we read about ethical coffee production, it means everything from making sure the bean picker makes a living wage, no pesticides are used, and everyone in the supply chain is treated well to name a few things. Talk about makeup and animal testing cruelty is a big issue, use of chemicals harmful to the environment, waste streams, and such. But for Jiz it means a bigger payday for the plantation owner...

  Then the suggestion that government paperwork was ever designed to help the performer. Here's a clue; if someone comes up to you and says they are from the government and they are there to help you, hold onto your wallet for dear life because what they say and the truth are worlds apart. As a performer, your contract with the producer ends when the scene is shot and you walk away with money in hand, the pirate isn't fucking you over, he's fucking the producer over. You know, the producer that will edit your scene ten different ways to sell it to unsuspecting consumers that he will fuck who you think aren't paying enough already.

  So if you want the world to favorably respond to cries of ethical porn, as someone who is transitioning to behind the scenes work you should be fighting first for ethical treatment of the employee performers, making sure that there is no gender gap in who gets paid the most, and all the other things mentioned above before getting on your high horse about the creepy little slugs that steal copyrighted material. They may suck but can you honestly say they suck worse than the average producer/company? Whether you "feel" like you're not being exploited or not, you are contributing to many who are being exploited by misdirecting the public.