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  • In 2014, an American porn star auctioned off a lead role in one of her films for several

  • thousand dollars. But since the part included sexual acts, some have asked how this situation

  • differs from prostitution. So, what is the difference? How is pornography legal?

  • Well, prostitution is defined as a sexual act that’s given or received for money,

  • or other payment. With a few exceptions in rural Nevada, prostitution is prohibited by

  • law in most of America. Both sellers and buyers of sex can be punished with fines and jail

  • time. According to the US government, prostitutiondirectly contributes to the modern-day

  • slave trade and is inherently demeaning."

  • Now technically, pornography is very similar to prostitution because porn actors ARE being paid to depict sexual acts.

  • However, porn is considered to fall under a form of artistic expression,

  • and is thus protected by the First Amendment, unlike prostitution.

  • At the heart of the matter is the fact that prostitution is viewed by the government as

  • being detrimental to society, while pornography is thought to have at least SOME kind of culturally

  • significant value.

  • Of course, there are forms of porn that overstep this boundary and ARE considered illegal.

  • In particular, the First Amendment does not apply to things that are considered obscene.

  • Obscenity inextreme pornis off limits, meaning there can be no pornos featuring animals,

  • corpses, urine or feces. And child pornography is also strictly forbidden.

  • In California court cases, there were also a few other distinguishing features of pornography

  • that helped confirm its difference from prostitution. In porn, the camera is the primary reason

  • and motivation for the sex act, whereas in prostitution, it’s completely unnecessary.

  • Also for porn, the main beneficiary is the porn-viewer, and not the client, as it is

  • in prostitution.

  • To prove a film company is really making pornography and not simply trying to justify prostitution,

  • they must confirm that they intend to distribute the films they shoot. There are also multiple

  • business filming licenses necessary, and the company must keep detailed records of their

  • performers. If a company isn’t careful, they could be susceptible to prostitution

  • accusations.

  • Although the line between porn and prostitution seems thin, there are strict guidelines regulating

  • pornography which would be difficult to prove in a purely sexual transaction. Although porn

  • is considered legal, pornography producers are occasionally prosecuted for not following

  • the rules, and straying close to prostitution, or outside the bounds of the First Amendment.

  • Just because there’s a camera present, doesn’t make it legal.

  • Could you imagine watching up to 700 porn videos a day FOR A LIVING? That’s what these

  • censors in China do. Watch this video from Seeker Daily to learn more about them. Thanks

  • for watching TestTube News! Don’t forget to like and subscribe for new videos. See

  • you next time.

In 2014, an American porn star auctioned off a lead role in one of her films for several

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