Page 16 - AVN July 2013

EDITOR’S DESK
WE’VE GOT ISSUES | By Mark Kernes
The Free Ride’s Over
A At tt te en nt ti io on n, , p pr ro od du uc ce er rs s: : p pa ay y y yo ou ur r f fa ar re e
Remember the “old days” of porn? Most of you don’t; you either weren’t in the industry
then, or more likely weren’t even born yet. But for adult producers and distributors on
both coasts, it was practically a license to print money. Even retailers who managed to
avoid being busted could score a bundle with very little work: Just put the VHS boxes
out there on the shelves and watch the customers stream through the door, cash in hand.
Guess what: Those days are over—and it’s not just because of the current recession. It’s
because with the so-called “mainstreaming of porn,” the production and retail sales parts
of the industry are no longer “flying under the radar”; rather, they’re front and center in
mainstream media’s eyeline ... and that means they’re sitting targets for every pissant
“social reformer” and conservative/religious crackpot (or group of crackpots) that can
catch the ear of a “news” organization ... or the attention of a court.
Believe me, I’d like nothing better than to be able to tell producers and directors that
they can just write or buy a script, hire some talent and crew, spend a few days shooting
hot sex, get it edited, authored, pressed and shipped ... and then just lie back and not
worry about it any longer, aside from maybe doing some promotion to spark sales. But
the aforementioned “reformers” and nutcases are currently spending millions of dollars to
keep that from happening, and in the process, making your life tougher.
Well, I’m here to make it tougher still.
I just got back from covering eight days of testimony and argument in Free Speech
Coalition’s lawsuit against 2257. On what I think of as “our side,” there were two
attorneys—Mike Murray and Lorri Baumgardner—while on the other side, not only were
there four DOJ attorneys trying to defend this incredibly useless law each day, but also at
least two or three law clerks and one guy whose only job, it appeared, was to make sure
the documents they were discussing showed up on the video screens at the lawyers’ tables.
And that’
s not counting the unknown government employees who’d spend a day or two
in the audience, watching the proceedings.
All of those government workers were paid for by taxes. Your taxes.
And who’s paying for the attorneys on “our side”? That would be us—particularly those
of us who are members of the Free Speech Coalition or have made donations to FSC.
As an on-the-scene observer of the case, I believe that the plaintiffs made their case in
court, and it should have been a slam-dunk to get the law thrown out—but in fact, given
that Judge Baylson tossed out FSC’s lawsuit entirely until the appeals court reinstated it,
there’s still a decent chance he’ll uphold the law, which means another trip up the appeals
ladder. And FSC hasn’t even finished paying Murray for the work he’s done so far!
Then take Measure B, which requires that before a producer can shoot a single frame
of hardcore (or simulated!) footage, he/she needs a health certificate from the county,
which in turn requires that the producer agree to force the use of “barrier protection,
including condoms, to shield performers from blood or other potentially infectious mate-
rial during the production of films.” And if you were wondering what the market is for
hazmat-suited porn, you’re in the wrong business. Now Vivid is leading the charge to get
Measure B overturned, but AIDS Healthcare Foundation is spending millions to keep
it—and in the process, drive you out of business.
And AHF has promised to follow you no matter where you move to make sure you
stay out of business!
The point is, all this legal defense costs money, BIG money, and unless you free
riders—you know who you are—start anteing up, you’d better start thinking about what
your next line of work will be, ’cause you ain’t gonna be long in this one!
What can you do to help? Call or write Vivid to see how you can help fund the
Measure B suit.
To fund the 2257 suit, Free Speech Coalition is relying on the support of individuals
and companies through membership dues, donations and fundraising efforts. If you aren’t
already a member, email membership@freespeechcoalition.com. If you’d like to do more,
go to FreeSpeechCoalition.com/donate to make a quick contribution online. Or if you’re
looking to have fun while donating funds, go bowling with FSC and LATATA on July
28. For information, go to PornStarBowling.com.
Or just sit back and watch your career go down the drain. The choice is yours—but
there’s really only one choice, isn’t there?
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