This newsletter is sent free of charge to FSC
members and supporters. For personal contact, call 1-800-476-7813.
Free Speech X-Press
Delivering Weekly Censorship Updates to the Adult Industry
Vol. VI, No. 26, May 14, 2004 -- A Member Service of the
Free Speech Coalition
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Free Speech X-press is researched and edited by Kat Sunlove
and Layne Winklebleck.
Copyright 2004 Free Speech Coalition. Permission to reprint
granted to FSC members; please give credit.
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VISIT OUR WEBSITE FOR FSC MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION
http://www.freespeechcoalition.com
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SAVE THE DATE! NIGHT OF THE STARS - JULY 24
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[The Free Speech X-Press will not be published next week
because Layne is taking the week off. The next X-Press
will be headed your way May 28.]
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HIV OUTBREAK UPDATE
LOS ANGELES, CA The self-imposed adult video industry quarantine
following the recent positive tests for five performers
has been lifted, except for half of the 50 actors deemed
at risk. The other half of the 50 have been given the all-clear
by the Adult Industry Medical Healthcare Foundation (AIM)
because they have now tested negative for HIV three times
in 45 days, using a series of six extremely sensitive tests.
AIM director Sharon Mitchell, confident that there will
be no more HIV outbreaks, expects those still under quarantine
to be taken off the list in the next three or four weeks.
Mitchell said the industry had mostly responded very well
to the voluntary shut-down and that there had been no pressure
from within the industry to end the moratorium early.
From Reuters, 5/12/04
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4906839/
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ANTI-SPAM TACTIC MAY VIOLATE CAN-SPAM ACT
SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- OptIn, an e-mail marketing company whose
president Scott Richter says is a legitimate commercial e-mail
service in compliance with the Can-Spam Act, has won a temporary
restraining order against SpamCop, an antispam operation.
SpamCop fields people’s complaints about unwanted mail and
their senders and forwards the Internet Protocol addresses
to 3rd party Internet Service Providers (ISPs), which in
turn use the information to filter and block the commercial
e-mails.
However, according to OptIn, this blacklisting tactic does
not allow them an opportunity to correct the complaint
by removing the email addresses from future
mailings in accordance with the Can-Spam Act. Richter argues that SpamCop
reports spam to the wrong people -- the ISPs rather than
the companies that send the
e-mail. A Northern California District Court judge apparently thought this
argument had merit. An additional hearing has been scheduled.
From Stefanie Olsen,CNET News.com, 5/11/04
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1104_2-5210518.html
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SURVEY CASTS LIGHT ON INTERNET USE
CYBERSPACE, USA -- A recent study on the adult Internet suggests
that our society is in the midst of a new stage of the sexual
revolution. Although not really a scientific study because
it does not represent a random sample, the Elle/MSNBC.com
Cybersex and Romance Survey does catalog habits of over 15,000
respondents to an MSNBC call for volunteers to answer the
survey.
Among survey respondents, 81 percent of men and 53 percent
of women are sampling some kind of sex-related activity
online, whether participating in adult chatrooms,
posting to a sex newsgroup or interacting with someone on a live Webcam.
Adult entertainment is also popular. 41 percent of women
and 75 percent of men who
responded have intentionally viewed or downloaded erotic films or photos.
58 percent of women and 55 percent of men have logged
onto a personal site. Of
these, roughly half of the women and 36 percent of men said that personals
sites have made a positive change in their social life.
From MSNBC, 5/11/04
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4873026/
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P2P GROUP TESTIFIES IN CONGRESS
WASHINGTON, DC The Distributed Computing Industry Association,
a peer-to-peer (P2P) network trade group, has testified before
the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection
here, denying charges that child pornography is proliferating
on P2P networks.
"The use of file sharing software for the distribution
of [child] pornography is regrettable, but it is less
a problem than activity in many other environments,"
said Martin Lafferty, the association’s chief executive.
Lafferty added that since
P2P software first burst upon the scene, companies like Kazaa, the world’s
most
popular P2P software, have added search filters that are effectively blocking
out pornographic materials.
Representative Joe Pitts (R-Pa), who has introduced legislation
requiring file-swapping services to obtain parental consent
before allowing children
to use P2P network
software, took exception to Lafferty’s comments, claiming the P2P filters
do not work.
From Roy Mark, Internet News, 5/6/04
http://www.internetnews.com/xSP/article.php/3350801
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VALENTI OPPOSES “R" RATING FOR SMOKING
WASHINGTON, DC -- Jack Valenti, the soon to retire legendary
head of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA),
has cited the First Amendment and the demands of artistic
freedom in opposing non-voluntary limits on smoking in movies
before a Senate Commerce Committee hearing. A study last
year found that teens who watch movies with smoking in them
are much more likely to start smoking themselves. The issue
has heated up in the wake of those findings.
Anti-smoking activists who testified, including Maryland
Attorney General Joseph Curran, said they wanted films
with smoking in them to be given an ‘R' rating.
Valenti said the ratings respond to what the MPAA surveys have found that
parents are concerned about. If the MPAA added smoking,
Valenti said, environmentalists,
animal activists and other groups would want their concerns addressed in
ratings, too.
From Erica Werner, The Associated Press, 5/11/04
http://www.newsday.com/news/politics/wire/
sns-ap-hollywood-smoking,0,1441232.story?coll=sns-ap-politics-headlines
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ANTI-UPSKIRT PHOTO LAW PASSES COMMITTEE
WASHINGTON, DC The House Judiciary Committee has approved
a bill, already passed by the Senate, that would prohibit
taking covert pictures in locker rooms, bedrooms and other
places where people have a reasonable expectation of privacy.
The intent is to outlaw “upskirt" photos and other forms
of video voyeurism made possible by cell-phones and miniature
cameras. The proposed Video Voyeurism Prevention Act would
carry penalties of fines and up to a year in prison. Some
Web sites advertise “upskirt" pictures of unsuspecting
women on escalators or other public places. Some gyms have
banned
cell phones or cameras because of the problem.
From Reuters, 5/11/04
http://news.com.com/2100-1041_3-5211421.html?tag=nefd.he
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ADULT FILM TO CHANGE A STEREOTYPE
DAVIS, CA -- University of California Davis Professor Darrell
Hamamoto has financed an adult movie titled “Skin on Skin,"
starring a Korean American actor, and plans to launch an
adult production
company that he believes will empower Asian American men.
"I wanted people to look at this Asian American and say,
‘He’s great, he’s performing, he’s bright, he’s beautiful,’”
said Hamamoto. “I wanted to take the lowest road
possible. Something basic. Raw."
Hamamoto teaches about the cliches and sexual stereotypes
about Asian men, telling his classes they should create
their own images.
"Make your own movies. You have to take it into your own
hands," he lectures. Now he has taken his own advice.
In addition to “Skin on Skin," Hamamoto produced a documentary on the
making of “Skin on Skin" with commentary from Asian American filmmakers,
academicians
and playwrights.
From David Pierson, The L.A. Times, 5/12/04
http://www.latimes.com/features/lifestyle/la-et-pierson12may12,1,5142041.story?coll=la-headlines-lifestyle
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FUNNY BUNNIES UPSET TOURISTS
NEW YORK, NY -- A new Swatch Watch billboard in Times Square
features six pairs of cute little rabbits in X-rated poses.
"Touch your swatch, pick your position" reads the ad. The billboard kicks
off the promotion of a new “Bunnysutra" Swatch line that features the company’s
new
touch technology. When touched, the clock hands land on “happy bunny positions."
Times Square visitors walking by the racy new ad saw pictures of bunnies doing
what
bunnies do, all in the new, family-friendly New York district.
"I have two children, and I would not want them to see
that," said Ann Childs, 33, of Lakeland, Florida. “What
do I tell them when they ask about what those
bunnies are doing? It’s awful."
A spokesperson for Swatch Group US said, “Swatch is always
very tongue in cheek. This is a playful, fun ad."
From Lorena Mongelli, The New York Post, 5/10/04
http://www.nypost.com/news/regionalnews/23876.htm
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FROM THE FRYING PAN INTO THE FIRE
DALLAS, TX After long legal battles, Baby Dolls and two
other exotic dance clubs here were closed by the city last
summer.
Recently, a new licensed restaurant, Planet Venus,
opened its doors at one of the club locations. Subsequently,
an online adult services review reported that there were
secret specialty items on a separate menu, so to speak,
at the new restaurant. Reporters from a local television
station
visited the restaurant and confirmed that a sex club had
indeed replaced the dance club.
"After spending years and years in court and, spending
all of the millions of dollars in legal fees here they
dropped the ball and this opens up," said neighborhood
activist Gary Turner. “It’s absurd."
Vice squad officers have reportedly made arrests. Additional
costs to the city have not been determined.
From Brett Shipp, The Dallas Morning News, 5/12/04
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/
wfaa040511_am_venus.1b19f1b42.html
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UpComing Events
MAY 12 -16, 2004, Lifestyles, Princess Hotel, Alcapulco,
www.Lifestyles.org
MAY 16 Jenna Fund fundraiser, Hard Rock Cafe, Las Vegas,
www.adultfund.com
JUN 9-12 Cybernet Expo, San Diego, CA www.cybernetexpo.com
JUN 18-20, 2004 Erotica L.A., Los Angeles, CA http://www.erotica-la.com/
JUL 7-11, 2004 -- Lifestyles West, Stardust Hotel, Las
Vegas, http://lifestyles-convention.com/
JUL 24, 2004 Night of the Stars Sheraton
Universal Hotel Los Angeles, CA - 866-FSC-9373
JUL 25 FSC’s Bob Tremont Memorial Golf Tournament, Sylmar,
CA, 818-348-9373
JUL 26-28 ANME, Sheraton Universal Hotel, Los Angeles,
CA - 818-772-0100
AUG 13-15, 2004 Internext -- Westin Diplomat,
Hollywood, Florida www.Internext-expo.com
AUG 29-SEPT 4, 2004 -- Gentlemen’s Club Owners Expo
and Exotic Dancer Fan Fair, Mandalay Bay Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas,
NV - www.ExoticDancer.com.
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Subscriptions to Free Speech X-Press are FREE to FSC members.
Contact us at Sunlove@direcway.com or 800-476-7813.
Kat Sunlove
Legislative Affairs Director
Free Speech Coalition
P.O. Box 907
Cool, CA 95614
530-888-1554
