This week, adult video giant Pornhub revealed it has taken the extraordinary step of deleting millions of videos posted by users. The step, named by the Canadian-born website "the most comprehensive safeguards in the history of the user-generated platform," comes in the wake of a New York Times opinion piece alleging that the "site is infested with videos of rape."
Last week, Pornhub revealed that it would restrict uploads to only approved users. The service has now suspended all videos for a platform not submitted by existing partners or participants of its Model program, as stated by Motherboard. Suspended content will be subject to review early next year by Pornhub.
In a statement, the service acknowledged that the new model is arguably the strictest one adopted by a content platform. "This implies that every piece of Pornhub content is from verified uploaders," it writes, "a requirement that has yet to be instituted by platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Snapchat and Twitter."
The Times gave accounts of graphic exploitation, some first-hand. "I don't see why a business that monetizes sexual assaults on children or unconscious women should be supported by search engines, banks or credit card companies," Nicholas Kristof wrote. "If PayPal is able to suspend Pornhub co-operation, American Express, Mastercard and Visa may do so."
Big credit card firms soon followed suit. Discover revealed last week that, after similar moves by Mastercard and Visa, it would break ties with the service. No doubt, the added motivation pushed Pornhub further to take even more drastic action than previously announced.
In a statement, the site acknowledged that 118 cases of child sexual exploitation on the website were identified by the Internet Watch Foundation watchdog organization. The service calls the number "118 too many." In its article, the service was defensive, claiming it was singled out because of its emphasis on adult content.
The service writes that it is clear that Pornhub is being threatened not because of our practices and how we compare with our peers, but because we are an adult content website. These are the same movements that have demonized Playboy, the National Endowment for the Arts, sex education, LGBTQ rights, the rights of women, and even the American Library Association for 50 years. Today, Pornhub happens to be here.
