Every second around the world $3,424.92 is being spent on pornography. Every second 28,258 internet users are looking at porn. Every second 372 internet users are typing adult search terms into search engines. A new porno video is being made in America every 39 minutes.
The Golden Globes may have been cancelled, but the Adult Movie Awards recently saw more than 5000 film stars and producers strut the red carpet in Las Vegas. Last year Australians looked at 5,655,800 pages of internet porn.
In 2006 the world pornography industry revenue was almost $109 billion. The pornography industry is larger than the revenues of the top technology companies combined – that’s Microsoft, Google, Amazon, eBay, Yahoo!, Apple, Netflix and EarthLink. In America the money made from porn exceeds the combined revenues of ABC, CBS, and NBC. It has been argued, too, that the battle between HD DVD and Bluray hinges on which format the adult industry will favour.
These days porn is more powerful than ever before. Now the rise of the internet has allowed us all to become exhibitionists to some extent. But how much is too much? And where will it all lead?
“I seriously think I’m addicted to porn,” says Carl, 25, “or at least dependant on it. I find it so hard to get turned on without it these days.” Carl says that the day he bought a laptop, his entire life changed. “I’ve always had porno videos and DVDs and they turned me on, but the internet just opened up this whole world to me. Firstly, there was just so much of it and most of it free! There I was with this high speed internet connection, this computer that had loads of memory, nobody was home – the world was my oyster!”
Carl says that he went overseas on holidays recently and left his laptop at home. It was an attempt to break his growing porn addiction. “I swear, I felt like I didn’t know how to masturbate without it. I had to use my imagination for once and it was really, really difficult! I remember one night trawling through my mind trying to remember some really hot moments to get me in the mood, and seriously all that flashed through my mind were snippets from porno movies.”
Pornography is obviously a thriving industry and can definitely add some spice many a situation, but is there such a thing as too much? Many experts say yes.
Porn addiction in general is defined as “a psychological addiction to, or dependence upon, pornography, theoretically characterised by obsessive viewing, reading, and thinking about pornography and sexual themes to the detriment of other areas of one’s life.”
Throw the internet into the mix and you’ve got a whole new problem. Some psychologists argue that internet porn addiction is even more powerful than ordinary porn addiction because of its wide availability and explicitness. The internet also offers privacy and interactivity, which only fuels the fire.
So how do you know you’ve got a problem? While porn addiction is not currently included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the bible of the psychiatric profession, the American Psychiatric Association’s formal diagnostic criteria for other kinds of addictions can still be applied to pornography.
If you have a recurring inability to resist the impulse to look at porn, if you feel an increasing sense of tension immediately prior to looking at porn and if you feel pleasure or relief as soon as you do, then you might want to read on.
Addicts usually say yes to at least five of the following –
I have a frequent preoccupation with the behaviour in question,
I frequently engage in this behaviour to a greater extent or over a longer period than intended,
I’ve repeatedly made efforts to reduce, control, or stop the behaviour,
I’ve spent a great deal of time on activities surrounding the need to engage in this behaviour,
I frequently engage in this behaviour instead of fulfilling occupational, academic, domestic or social obligations,
I’ve slowed down on social, occupational, or recreational activities to make more time for this behaviour,
I’ve continued the behaviour despite knowledge of having a persistent or recurrent social, financial, psychological, or physical problem that is caused or exacerbated by the behaviour,
My tolerance for this behaviour has increased, so in order to achieve the desired effect I’ve increased the intensity or frequency of the behaviour,
I feel restlessness or irritability if I’m unable to partake in this behaviour,
Some of these symptoms have persisted for at least one month, or have occurred repeatedly over a longer period of time.
So, you’re an porn addict – so what? Is that such an issue? Some would argue that it’s not. There are loads of people out there who watch a lot of porn and still lead happy, healthy, balanced, productive lives.
Like any addiction, at the end of the day it comes down to where porn sits in your life. Does it stand in the way of real relationships? Does it desensitise you to other experiences? Do you find you need it to get off? Do you go to outlandish steps to have it around?
“I would like to get rid of it all at some point,” says Carl. “It’s such a waste of time. I could spend hours – entire weekends – surfing porn. It really is a waste of time. I’d like to be able to turn my computer on one day and not even connect to the internet. Just use it for work and not feel that underlying anxiety, that urge.”
FriniK says...
When virtual reality comes to light is when we're really going to have a problem...
Dj DeKay says...
World of Warcraft is just the beginning ;)
i_have_ADD says...
poor carl
insert nickname here says...
you can never have too much porn
timmyb says...
Pr0n is the reason my tracksuit pants are crusty and stained.