Columns Sep 23, 2010 at 4:00 am

How to Keep Your Sex Business Humming Without Craigslist

Comments

1
As Danah Boyd so eloquently explains in this article, the motivations of those prosecutors to help victims of sex slavery is honorable, however the lack of comprehension for the real-life effects of this policy is lacking.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/danah-boyd…
2
Wow, the beginning of this is so incredibly stupid it defies belief. OF COUSE craiglist made it easier for pimps and pedaphiles to exist as it was practically free advertizing. Make it harder and more expensive for folks to advertize and you're obviously hurting their business, duh. And no person who has, you know, READ the U.S. Constitution thinks the 1st amendment trumps EVERYTHING else in the U.S. justice system (you obviously can't advertzie for burglars, arsonists, forgers, or murderers either, to name just a few illegal acts where you have no freedom to advertize your skills). So, I have no sympathy for those whining about their free speech rights being violated. As for those too stupid to figure out how to otherwise market their business, well, that's evolution in action (and perhaps a prime reason why they're in the sex business to begin with?).
3
@olderwithmoreinsurance You're missing the point. If Craigslist wants to refuse to allow sex ads, they are perfectly within their rights to do so. But when the government threatens and pressures Craigslist into ceasing to publish them, that's censorship and a violation of the 1st Amendment. And that's what happened. CL even had a big black bar saying CENSORED on its site for a time.
4
"Make it harder and more expensive for folks to advertize and you're obviously hurting their business, duh."

So you think prostitution will decrease now that it won't be advertised on Craigslist?
5
@kungfujew But of course! Also, now that prostitution can't be advertised on Craigslist pedophilia has ceased to exist.
6
I'm so glad that sex workers won't be able to post on a moderated forum like craigslist. Now, they (and their customers) will be much safer on the remaining "anything goes" listings that are still out there.

Because its so much better for the prosecutors to go after a forum that makes a good faith effort to note and report suspected underage/trafficking exploitation than to actually, you know, go after the people doing the exploiting.

Please wait...

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