As we all know, there is everything on the Internet - and above all, there is a permanent, unlimited supply of erotica . Hardly any other category offers as many different sites as erotica .
According to studies, 25 percent of all searches on the Internet are about pornography - that's 68 million searches.
The porn industry - the industry turns over almost 13 million euros per day.
How do such sales come about?
It is still widely believed that pornographic material is primarily aimed at men. However, the statistics only seem to support this view to a limited extent. Because over 43 percent of all Internet users consume pornographic and erotic content on sites like Fundorado . With a female share of the total population of just over 51 percent, it can be assumed that many women also watch porn online.
This demand is diligently served by the provider side - otherwise 35 percent of all data traffic online could not contain pornographic material. One in five men even consumes erotic material while working in the office - among women the figure is even 13 percent.
What's striking here is:
70 percent of erotic data is accessed on weekdays between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. – exactly in the typical “nine-to-five” work rhythm. Given this proportion, it seems that many respondents do not answer completely honestly. Otherwise most inquiries would have to come from housewives, which is at least statistically unlikely.
What's also surprising is that the Germans, who are internationally regarded as prudish and uptight, are the porn world champions . The Federal Republic accounts for 12.4 percent of the pornographic data stream worldwide. Spain comes in second with less than ten percent. The French, who are considered to be joyful and energetic, come in seventh place in this ranking - with little more than seven percent.
But: Pornography is by no means everything in Germany. Because when football is played, sport comes first . During the Champions League final between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund in 2013, demand for pornography on the Internet fell by 40 percent.
(Source: netzsieger.de 2020)
The dark sides of the large erotic offering on the Internet
This wide range of pornography on the Internet has its downsides . More and more children are coming into contact with pornography at far too young an age. The entry age into the world of online eroticism in Germany is currently only 11 to 12 years old.
At this age, children are easily influenced by their environment. There is a risk that they will learn an unhealthy attitude towards sexuality through pornography, even before parents or schools have the opportunity to educate them.
Girls and boys suffer from this equally, albeit differently. Young men often allow themselves to feel unhealthy pressure to perform, which can rob them of their desire. Through the offer of pornography, young women learn that they should try out every conceivable practice on themselves and so easily become victims of violence.
However, both genders are influenced by an unhealthy body ideal due to the excess of pornography. The bodies that they see on the Internet - and of course in other parts of the media - and understand as normal are perfectly staged, retouched and often surgically optimized. This body ideal can only be unhealthy.
The dark side of the porn industry
Internet porn has become completely normal in our hypersexualized society. Many of us believe that actors simply love having sex and getting paid for it, which means there is nothing wrong with the porn industry. But in reality that is not the case.
On social media, porn stars tend to play along and give the illusion that they're living their best lives, having lots of sex and making lots of money. In reality, the world of online porn has a dark underbelly filled with sexual violence, exploitation and addiction.
Once you know what's really going on, you might wonder if it's really an industry you want to support with your clicks.
“Of course I lied to my fans. I made them believe that I was living a fantasy life that was far from the truth. I bought into her fantasies. I said I wanted to have sex 24/7 and gave the impression that I absolutely loved what I was doing and was living this happy life.”
confesses Jan Villarubia, former porn actor ( Remojo )
There are endless lived stories of violence and trauma from women who have closed the door to porn. Those who are still working don't speak out for fear of being blacklisted - which is why we only hear these stories when actors leave the adult film industry behind.
How women get into the porn industry
People usually justify the porn industry by saying that the women who star in the films agree, so everything is fine. But it is not that easy.
“Usually they only “agree” in a degraded sense of the word... A person who despairs of stopping what is happening, sees no way out, has no real alternative, was often sexually abused as a child, may be addicted to drugs, is homeless “, hopeless, often tries to avoid beatings or killings, is almost always economically desperate, allows himself to be sexually abused for money,” says Catherine Mackinnon – legal scholar.
When you boil it down, there are three main reasons why women are interested in porn films:
Fame
Someone who craves fame may believe (or be led to believe) that entering the porn industry will land them a real acting job in the future.
A quest for fame that takes such a desperate route is often due to a personal history of neglect and/or abuse and reflects a deep need for love and approval from others.
Money
If a young woman is desperate for money, perhaps because she has dependents such as children or family members, is homeless, and/or is struggling with an addiction, then porn may be a route she turns to out of sheer desperation - not because she is want.
The greater a woman's vulnerability, the harder it is to resist the demands of pornographers and porn buyers.
sex
When a woman enters the porn industry out of an obsession with sex, there is often an unhealthy addiction or hypersexual disorder that the industry is profiting from. Sexual disorders usually occur as symptoms of broader mental health issues, and working in the porn industry makes things worse.
Of course, not all porn actors' backstories will be the same, but there are similarities. An exploratory study that spoke to women in the industry found "young age, financial insecurity, previous exposure to sexual violence and poor mental health" to be the cause for many of the actresses.
Sexually transmitted diseases
Despite regulations and efforts to prevent it, there is a high risk of contracting a sexually transmitted disease as a porn performer. A 2012 report from LA found that 28% of 168 porn actors had chlamydia or gonorrhea, or both.
However, just because there are tests doesn't mean you're safe as an artist. Let's say you get tested for an STD, but then have unprotected sex with someone and get an STD on the same day. Now you will spread the HIV you contracted for the next 28 days until you are tested and treated again.
Prostitution and human trafficking
When we hear the word “human trafficking ,” what comes to mind are Netflix thrillers about kidnappings and international gangster circles.
The legal definition of sex trafficking actually includes “any instance in which the person is coerced, tricked, or coerced” .
Here are some common examples of sex trafficking in the porn industry:
- An actor is coerced or tricked by his agent or director into performing a sex act or having sex with an actor who is on his "no" list.
- A porn actor shows up on set to find the scene is more aggressive or degrading than he was told, and his agent threatens to cancel his other bookings if he doesn't comply.
- During filming, the other actors become increasingly violent and things spiral out of control. The woman tries to get the director to cut, but the camera keeps rolling.
- Sometimes videos and images of more extreme sex trafficking incidents (the kind you think of when you hear that term) end up on porn sites and you, the viewer, won't notice.
Of course, there are degrees to sex trafficking, and these things don't happen behind the scenes of every porn film. The problem is that when you browse and watch porn online, you have no way of knowing what is a result of sex trafficking and what is not.
What role does adult film giant Pornhub play in perpetuating the industry's underbelly?
Pornhub was the 10th most visited website in the world, with more visits than Netflix or Amazon.
Until recently, there was no control or regulation over who or what was uploaded to the platform. More and more non-consensual and sex trafficking films were being uploaded. Viewers became accustomed to extreme, aggressive content, so the demand for content that depicted violence against women increased and the problem continued to grow.
Following a global campaign led by Trafficking Hub, Pornhub had removed 80% of its content (a staggering total of 10 million videos) by January 2021 and is now facing seven major lawsuits.
There is also international investigation into child sexual abuse, sex trafficking and other illegal activities.
We're not saying there's anything wrong with the idea of adult entertainment: it's the level of abuse and exploitation that exists in the industry that's hard to agree with. Watching porn doesn't make you a bad person, and it's easy to develop a compulsive porn habit because of its effects on the brain.
The more men quit porn, the less demand there will be and the more the adult industry will be forced to change its ways. Read on about a wonderful initiative and project around the REMOJO app to take on the porn-free challenge yourself!
Stop watching porn for good and achieve sexual self-control with REMOJO
REMOJO is a behavior change and positive sexuality app that empowers men around the world to live a porn-free lifestyle and be the best they can be.
The team behind this project knows that watching porn is antithetical to our best selves and our highest values.
And if you've ever tried to quit smoking, you know: willpower alone is almost never enough.
It can take many failed attempts to rewire our neural pathways, shift our beliefs and mindsets, change habits, and build a support system and a life that meets our emotional needs.
And even those who manage to quit for good on the first try may still need guidance on how to develop healthy relationships and sexual connections after porn—and help reverse porn-induced sexual dysfunction.
The REMOJO app accompanies men on the entire path to sexual self-control and optimal vitality .
