SALT LAKE CITY — A Republican member of the Utah state legislature is arguing for a return to the pre-1973 standard for determining what speech or expression is “obscene” and therefore not protected by the First Amendment.

Utah Rep. Ken Ivory (R-West Jordan) previously authored a bill, HB 374, banning “pornographic and indecent books” in the state’s public schools; it was signed into law in March. Last week, he demanded a total reversal of the last 50 years of legal and judicial practice, dismissing the “Miller test,” which has been the nation’s legal standard for a half century, as merely the opinion of a few Supreme Court justices at the time.

The Miller test, developed in the landmark 1973 case Miller v. California, establishes three conditions for determining “obscenity”: (i) Whether “the average person, applying contemporary community standards” would find that the work, taken as a whole, appeals to the prurient interest; (ii) Whether the work depicts or describes, in a patently offensive way, sexual conduct or excretory functions specifically defined by applicable state law; and (iii) Whether the work, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value.

Ivory called for Utah to challenge the Miller test, and the “taken as a whole” concept in particular. Such a challenge, if successful, could open the floodgates for anyone wishing to challenge material based on sexual content or expression.

According to a report by local station KSL NewsRadio, before a meeting of the Education Interim Committee on Wednesday, a reporter asked Ivory if he agreed with the last 50 years of jurisprudence that works should be “taken as a whole” when determining whether they are First Amendment-protected speech.

“Three judges of nine on the Supreme Court said that,” Ivory answered. “It’s not the law. It’s not a holding of the Supreme Court and yet we act as if it is.”

The Purge of Libraries Must Go On

Ivory was at the Capitol demanding that the Utah State Board of Education (USBE) tighten enforcement of HB 374, claiming, “There are books containing graphic content that have been allowed to stay” after an initial purge.

USBE was seeking clarification about interpreting the law, leading the legislature’s managing associate general counsel, Michael Curtis, to remark that the school district is being forced to choose whether it prefers to be sued for “violating a right to access to free speech by removing a book” or for “violating a clear state statute prohibiting a material.”

Utah law, KSL NewsRadio reported, “further defines what is harmful to minors as well as pornography. Both of those definitions say a book has to be taken on the whole and assessed for its literary value.”

But Ivory and other supporters of censorship hope to appeal to Utah’s indecency law, under which “if a depiction or description (of a book) violates any one of three criteria within that definition, the book can be pulled without taking it on the whole.” They cite the indecency law’s language as “a bright line rule for when a book can be pulled.”

Bright Lines and ‘Touching of the Human Buttock’

According to Utah state law, this “bright line” is whether a book depicts or describes the following: “Human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal. Acts of human masturbation, sexual intercourse, or sodomy. Fondling or other erotic touching of human genitals or pubic region. Fondling or other erotic touching of the human buttock or female breast that, when taken as a whole, has no serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors, considering ages of all minors who could be exposed to the material.”

The Utah version of the Miller test, specifically applied to minors, concerns whether a work “(i) Taken as a whole, appeals to the prurient interest in sex of minors; (ii) is patently offensive to prevailing standards in the adult community as a whole with respect to what is suitable material for minors; and (iii) taken as a whole, does not have serious value for minors.”

After the Education Interim Committee meeting, Ivory issued a statement contending that a guidance memo from the state attorney general supported his contention of a “bright line” rule. Ultimately, lawsuits such as those posited by the legislative counsel could test this and potentially lead to a federal ruling.

PHILADELPHIA — Fanger.vip parent company GFE Model Services has launched its new Brand-On-Demand platform for adult companies.

“Featuring a full line of logo gear, tees, hoodies, hats, client centric products, and more, this new service will allow clients to have a stand-alone merch store to offer their users and fans exclusive merchandise,” said a rep.

This expands on Fangear’s merch services for individual performers.

“Over the past 6 months, we’ve seen a huge uptick in the number of companies that have reached out to us for something like this,” said GFE CEO Danny Ferretti. “We’ve literally spent the last 30 days increasing our staff and warehouse space so we could accommodate the added inventory and production logistics.”

According to the company, the new platform is designed for companies to be as hands-off as possible.

“The new service is virtually a hands free situation for clients, as GFE will handle almost every detail,” the rep continued. “From e-commerce site build-out to hosting, product manufacturing and sourcing, payment processing, shipping, and customer support, it’s the most streamlined and worry free platform available to industry brands.”

For more information, visit GFE online or email sales@gfemodelservices.com.

Oct 25, 2022 3:01 PM PDT

HOLLYWOOD — Crystal Rush is the latest guest on the “Burbank Misfits” podcast, hosted by Rawstarr (aka DJ Duck) and CW (aka DJ Eclipse).

Crystal talks about her journey from being a personal trainer full-time to an adult star, her favorite places to shoot besides the US, and her new merch collaboration with InsideTheDrop. She also lets fans in on new scenes and DVDs coming out from Girlfriends Films, Evil Angel, and more. 

“Prince and CW were so much fun,” Rush said. “It was fun to look over my nine years in adult and to be asked questions I’d never been asked before. I think my fans will really enjoy the interview and learn even more about me.”

The full interview can be found here; follow the “Burbank Misfits” podcast on Twitter.

Follow Crystal Rush on Twitter; access her social media links here.

Oct 25, 2022 2:57 PM PDT

LOS ANGELES — Cherie DeVille stars opposite Jordi “El Nino” Pollo in a new scene from Brazzers. 

In “Freeuse Yoga And Shower Fuck,” DeVille starts off looking to relax with some yoga. “Unfurling her mat, Cherie finds a sticky load, knowing it has to be from costar Jordi ‘El Nino’ Pollo, who Cherie catches jerking off in the corner. Although annoyed, she agrees to let Jordi have his way while she continues her yoga poses,” a rep said.

“The scene continues in the shower and finally the bedroom before ending with Cherie completely satisfied,” he added. 

“I’m an excellent multi-tasker,” DeVille commented. “To be able to do my yoga session and have great sex at the same time is a great goal to have.”

Follow Cherie DeVille on Twitter. 

HARRISBURG, Penn. — A Republican member of the Pennsylvania state legislature has introduced a new bill mandating default “porn filters” on phones and computers sold in the state.

House Bill 2865 was introduced by Rep. Jim Gregory (R-Blair) and has been referred to the House Consumer Affairs Committee.

Gregory’s bill would hold companies criminally liable for selling any computer, smartphone or tablet in Pennsylvania without a default filter, purportedly “to block children from accessing harmful content.” 

Religious conservative GOP members and War on Porn crusaders in several state legislatures have introduced similar bills, which are copycat versions of the original “mandatory porn filter” bill that Utah Governor Spencer J. Cox signed into law in March 2021.

That bill only passed after it was amended with the odd mandate that it “will not go into effect until five additional states have adopted similar language. It gives a 10-year period for that to occur,” the Salt Lake City Fox affiliate reported in February 2021.

As XBIZ reported, a similar bill was defeated by more secular Republicans in Arizona in February 2022.

Rep. Gregory proudly admitted to the local ABC affiliate that his bill “mirrors legislation signed in Utah, which doesn’t go into effect until multiple states enact similar legislation.”

A Former TV Sports Journalist’s Notions About ‘Children’s Brains’

Gregory, whose background as a TV sports journalist does not seem to involve any neuroscience expertise, claims that these unspecified “porn filters” would “shield children from the harmful effects pornographic material can have on developing brains by protecting them from inadvertent exposure to pornography or access they attempted themselves.”

Faith-Based Surveillance Apps

“Porn filters” such as Covenant Eyes have recently faced controversy after a Wired report revealed that they are in fact surveillance apps marketed to churchgoers across America by faith-based corporations.

Following the bombshell report, the Google app store dropped the apps after determining they were violating its policies. Covenant Eyes and Accountable2You are appealing the ban. 

Republican operative and Mormon activist Dawn Hawkins, CEO of NCOSE — formerly Morality in Media — has claimed that “pornography can be highly addictive” and that research has “objectively identified a wide array of harms from pornography use.” However, scientists have found no basis for classifying pornography as an addiction; the idea seems instead to have arisen as a point of religious dogma in response to personal feelings of shame and guilt.

Hawkins has endorsed “porn filters,” telling the Baptist Press that she has “heard from hundreds of people who have struggled with pornography addiction and dependencies that the best way most of them have found to help is through an accountability model, similar to AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) and many successful gambling recovery programs.”

Ron DeHaas, president and co-founder of Covenant Eyes, chairs NCOSE’s board of directors.

The LDS Church has also promoted “porn filters” in Utah and nationwide, based on church elders’ theological belief that all porn — a term that for them encompasses all depictions of sexuality outside of the Mormon marriage — is a ploy by Satan to destroy Mormon households.

Main Image: Rep. Jim Gregory (R-Blair) (Photo: Twitter)

PASADENA — A three-judge Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals panel has upheld a district court’s dismissal of a civil lawsuit attempting to circumvent Section 230 and hold Reddit liable for third-party content under a federal civil sex trafficking statute.

The judges held that Section 230 shields Reddit from a civil suit filed by attorneys for anonymous plaintiffs who allege that Reddit users “posted and circulated sexually explicit images and videos of minors online.”

The victims and their parents attempted to bypass Section 230 protections by appealing to the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act.

The Ninth Circuit panel held that, as an “interactive computer services provider,” Reddit “generally enjoys immunity from liability for user-posted content under Section 230.”

The plaintiffs also invoked the controversial FOSTA carve-out, claiming that Section 230 immunity “does not apply to child sex trafficking claims if the conduct underlying the claim also violates” the criminal child sex trafficking statute.

The judges, however, concluded that since the plaintiffs did not allege that Reddit “knowingly participated in or benefited from a sex trafficking venture,” they therefore “failed to state a sex trafficking claim.”

Ninth Circuit ‘Reached the Correct Result’

Noted industry attorney and First Amendment expert Lawrence Walters of Walters Law Group told XBIZ, “While the wording of FOSTA’s intent provisions remain vague, this court reached the correct result by limiting any civil sex trafficking beneficiary liability claims to criminal conduct by the website operator itself, instead of focusing on the activities of its users.”

Walters noted that “any contrary holding would leave website operators and online service providers in the impossible position of trying to discern the circumstances in which they should have known of alleged trafficking activities by third parties in order to avoid civil liability.”

The Ninth Circuit’s ruling, he concluded, “resolves a critical split of authority in district court decisions which attempted to interpret a poorly drafted law that upset the internet ecosystem and resulted in widespread censorship of protected speech.”

An NCOSE-Promoted Attempt to Shut Down All UGC Content

The original lawsuit, which cited FOSTA-SESTA and was filed in April 2021 by attorneys for pseudonymous Jane and John Does, was originally dismissed a year ago.

At that time, U.S. District Judge James V. Selna found that Section 230 shielded Reddit from allegations of “profiting off of child pornography” over user-generated content (UGC).

In late November 2021, the lawsuit was revived through an appeal to the Ninth Circuit.

As XBIZ reported in March of this year, attorneys for the Jane and John Does filed an opening appellate brief for a proposed class of plaintiffs.

The initial 2021 lawsuit followed years of Reddit being targeted by religiously motivated anti-porn organization NCOSE for allowing any UGC involving sex, regardless of legality.

Reddit became the latest defendant in an orchestrated campaign of civil lawsuits attempting to challenge Section 230 protections in the name of protecting victims of sex trafficking.

Like similar lawsuits filed against Facebook, Twitter, Pornhub and WGCZ under NCOSE’s sponsorship, the Reddit lawsuit refers to an illegal video shot and uploaded by a third party. In each case, the third party is not part of the lawsuit. Instead, the plaintiff looks for a settlement from a large online platform that supposedly “promoted and monetized” the content.

Shortly before the original lawsuit was filed, Reddit CEO Steve Huffman stated during an interview with newsmagazine Axios HBO that his platform is “perfectly supportive” of pornographic content, as long as it does not feature involuntary sexualization or sexualization of minors.

Does v. Reddit

Oct 24, 2022 2:33 PM PDT

NEW ORLEANS — DomCon NOLA has released its schedule and list of vendors.

The event will take place this week from Thursday through Sunday at the Astor Crowne Plaza Hotel in New Orleans.

The convention connects professionals and lifestyle enthusiasts of BDSM with educational seminars on kink, social parties, live demonstrations on techniques as well as vendors with new and intriguing BDSM products.

Saffermaster, host of the popular Kinky Cocktail Hour podcast and distributor of the Slubb, enthused about the event.

“Lady Petra and I are presenting the well received ‘Kink Relationship Dynamics’ workshop,” Saffermaster said. “Please join us. We’re both experienced life coaches and can help you in creating the kinky dynamic of your dreams.”

The schedule and vendor list are available now.

Visit DomCon for registration details and follow the event on Twitter.

Oct 24, 2022 2:23 PM PDT

NEW YORK — Live VR cam platform DreamCam is partnering with Stripchat to livestream “PlayBunny Halloween VR Show,” Oct. 30, featuring _CurlBbGirl, EmmaBrady and Milla_Small.

“It’s known that Halloween Eve is the day when all the supernatural creatures and horrifying ghosts tend to visit our lives. But not this time,” a rep said. “Instead of Freddy or Jack-the-ripper, the parallel world sends two of the sexiest Playboy bunnies along with their evil master to play with your lower heart”

Daniel Golden, VP of Dreamcam, enthused about the event.

“The three-hour-long VR show is designed to cross all boundaries. You’ll have a ton of options granted by the crazy menu to fill your pleasure-o-meter over the top,” Golden said.

The show will stream on DreamCam and Stripchat.

MIAMI — Talent Testing Service (TTS) has begun distributing its proprietary TTS Clear ID for performer identity verification.

After a performer downloads the app and enters their information, the TTS Clear ID is stored in their Apple or Google wallet and contains a unique QR Code and other identifiers. Once the QR Code is scanned, the performer’s current and most up-to-date clearance status is displayed.

“We have always been firm believers in the QR Code to avoid falsified test results” said TTS President and CEO Sixto Pacheco. “The TTS Clear ID is a remarkable tool that provides the talents’ current real-time status.”

TTS Clear ID can be downloaded from the “Talents” dashboard at TalentTestingService.com. A current, valid picture must be uploaded in order to request a TTS Clear ID.

For more information, visit the TTS website.

LOS ANGELES — Mona Azar stars opposite Donny Sins in the latest release from Delphine Films, “What Are Bars For.”

Directed by Bloomer Yang, Sins plays a bartender who “has grown a big reputation among his loyal customers,” said a rep. “Mona comes to visit to talk about things besides work. They talk about life and Mona stands up to dance. She knows what she came for, and that is Donny.”

Yang enthused about his cast. 

“Donny and Mona are great friends in real life, and Donny was able to contact her to take over the leading role,” Yang said. “She has had great energy since the moment she arrived on set, learned her lines so fast, and did a fantastic job. Very professional and extremely talented.”

The full scene is streaming here.

Follow Azar and Delphine on Twitter.