Tag Archives: jerry barnett

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“Life in the Porn Age” – a ThinkIn by Tortoise Media

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I recently appeared at a ThinkIn – a discussion hosted by Tortoise Media. The subject was “Life in the Porn Age”, and the panelists (other than me) were: the tireless sexual freedom campaigner and First Lady of Sex, Charlotte Rose; pornstar Misha Mayfair; ‘porn addiction therapist’ Paula Hall; and solicitor Honza Cervenka, a specialist in ‘revenge porn’. The session was chaired by journalist and author Nichi Hodgson.

The write-up of the session slightly misrepresents me, by stating: “… free-speech activist Jerry Barnett warned us to be careful about concluding too much from the data available. Much of it is flawed, partial and based on conjecture.” In fact, I’m massive fan of data as the essential tool for debunking myths. What I in fact said was that false claims linking pornography to rising sexual violence were not backed by data: the available data (and there’s plenty) suggests the opposite, that rising porn use correlates with a decline in sexual violence. I devote a chapter in my book Porn Panic! to this subject.

(NOTE: The Tortoise link has now been updated with more accurate wording at my request).

Below is the video of the event. Enjoy!

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Events Update September 2019

Events, , ,

In my campaign to oppose censorship and oppose moral panics, I participate in many media and public events. On Friday, I participated in a debate at Exeter University titled “This House Would Watch Porn”, in front of around 140 students. Myself and Charlotte Rose (sex worker and free speech activist) won the debate easily (we won at least 90% of the vote). Charlotte livestreamed the debate via her phone, on Twitter, and you can watch it here (my speech begins at 5:10 and Charlotte’s around 16:10):

And tomorrow (Monday), I’ll be participating in a ThinkIn event in London for Tortoise Media. Tickets are available here. Please note that I often do these events unpaid, because I care deeply about the corrosive threat from moral panics, and the rising threat of censorship. You can support me by making a small donation at Patreon, or by buying my book, Porn Panic.

PANIC!

BBC 5 Live debate – “Is Pornography a Public Health Issue?”

Audio, Moral Panic, , , ,

Yesterday, BBC Radio 5 Live dedicated an hour to discussing the alleged threat posed to public health by pornography. The programme made little attempt to ask balanced questions, or examine any evidence beyond the anecdotal. Instead, it was premised on the assumption that porn poses a threat to society, and that “something must be done”.

I was invited on to the programme to discuss the issue. Before I joined the discussion, I listened with incredulity as a BBC-approved, evidence-free anti-sex moral panic was broadcast to the nation. I was eventually added to the discussion, and did my best to counter the misinformation, though no real time was allowed for discussion of solid evidence.

You can listen to the debate on iPlayer. The discussion starts at 8:00, and I join around 43:30. To support my work against censorship, please consider a small contribution to my Patreon campaign.

London Event: Jerry Barnett Speaking at Jordan Peterson Discussion Group

Events, Politics, ,

Event alert: Tuesday 27th February, London.

I’ll be speaking about the Porn Panic (the new war on sexual freedom and free expression) to the “Jordan Peterson Gentlemen’s Philosophy Meetup”, tomorrow evening. The event appears to be popular, so please RSVP if you intend to come.

The event isn’t directly related to Jordan Peterson, but was set up by some of his admirers. For those who don’t know, he’s a professor of Psychology and author who has recently gained notoriety for his defence of free speech and evidence-based discussion. His recent, bewildering, interview with Cathy Newman for Channel 4 News is worth watching: Newman appeared to repeatedly attempt to twist Peterson’s words and cast him (inaccurately) as an opponent of gender equality. The discussion – on why men and women make different choices and have differing outcomes – illustrates the cutting edge of science versus dogma – the new Darwinism vs Creationism. The fact that science is now regarded with suspicion by the political and media mainstream has deeply worrying implications, and is one of the issues I touch on in my book.

I’ve also created a Patreon campaign to help support my campaigning work. If you support my campaign against censorship and sexual repression, a small monthly contribution will help me create more content and speak at more events. I think we live in dangerous times – if you agree, please help me spread the word.

Jerry Barnett, Lianne Young, Vikki Dark and Gail Dines in Porn Debate on Tell Vanessa TV Show

Politics, Video, , , , ,

So here’s me, squished in between two ex pornstars, Lianne Young and Vikki Dark (now an anti-porn campaigner), to debate the new Digital Economy Bill (now passed into law as the Digital Economy Act). This is one of the perks of my campaigning work. The venue was the west London TV studios of Tell Vanessa, a current affairs discussion programme. The debate is the first thing in the programme. It’s followed at about 9:30 (if you can stomach it) by a Skype interview with anti-porn zealot – or should that be impartial academic porn researcher? – Gail Dines.

Lianne and I both take an anti-censorship position. Vikki and Gail take a pro-censorship one. You can also listen to my podcast interview with Vikki Dark here.

Podcast 14: Jerry at BBFC HQ

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For a long time, I’ve predicted that the “porn panic” was leading to mass website blocking. Recently, this very measure was introduced to the draft Digital Economy Bill. Britain is set to be the world’s first democracy with a powerful Internet censor. So I went to BBFC HQ in Soho Square to rant about it. This is the audio version – the video is on our YouTube channel.

In The Press

Comment, News, ,

It’s been a busy week for me, following the (totally unsurprising) announcement that the BBFC will be getting the power to block websites that breach its own rules. Or to put it another way, a private organisation is going to be writing its own law and applying its own punishments without oversight from Parliament or the courts.

Below are some press links from the Guardian, Huffington Post and the Independent. These are article I’ve written or in which I’ve been quoted. I’ve also been on the radio, and have made a video on this subject.

 

Jerry Barnett on the Radio

Audio

The government announced last week that the BBFC is to be given powers to block websites. Regular readers of this blog (or of my book Porn Panic!) won’t find this announcement surprising.

This will create unprecedented powers for an internet censor in a democratic country; I’ve been discussing this on the radio – you can hear me at:

  • Today Programme debate vs Claire Perry MP, BBC Radio 4 (starts at minute 50)
  • Interview with Julia Hartley-Brewer for talkRADIO

To support my campaign work, buy Porn Panic! or donate to the campaign,