The Porn Project
The great debate: Is pornography healthy in our society?
The question of pornography’s effects has been around for decades, but as with all debates, there are many answers. And in the case of porn, there are supporters and denouncers that aren’t fitting into clear categories anymore. But no one can deny the growth of the industry as a whole in the United States. In 1991 the internet was born and access to pornographic content quickly followed. In over 20 years the US porn industry has grown from approximately 1 billion to 15 billion annually.
And with 20 years to look back on, scientists, psychologists and sociologists have had plenty of time to discover more about the effects of pornography on humans and their existence.
Some studies are conclusive, others less so, but regardless, people have chosen sides. Denouncers stand behind studies that reveal how porn use effects our brain chemistry, just like heroin or cocaine. Supporters stand behind the belief that it’s a safe and socially acceptable way to explore our sexuality, not to mention a safer and kinder choice then infidelity.
So what’s truly at the heart of this debate? What are people really fighting for and against? What has neuroscience, psychology an social research found in the hundreds of studies conducted on the topic of porn use in human beings? Is the cry of having an epidemic on our hands real? And if so, would society want to do anything about it anyway? This project aims to get to the bottom of this decades old debate and reveal the truth about both the negative and positive effects of porn on our human brains, collective consciousness, and our society as a whole.