The mainstream world’s love of invoking anything porn-related in an effort to get dem clicks is well known. Food porn, shoe porn, electronics – you can see what they’re doing there. Inaccurate or incomplete “reporting” on industry happenings – readers must click!

Sadly, there’s an unfortunate tension embedded within these sorts of shoddy mainstream mentions and poor coverage – the (perceived) need for mainstream mentions and coverage. Though the idea of your name, your company’s name or your product’s name in lights may be appealing – Traffic! New Business! Conversion! — any member of the community will tell you about the trepidation that comes with speaking to the mainstream media. People feel compelled to share their expertise, but the possibility of misrepresentation and decontextualizing is very, very (very) real.

This tension then raises the question: Do you reject the porno exploitation bait, or do you ride the wave and hope for the best? Two examples of this rock/hard place position have emerged within the last week alone. 

Recently, “eclectic” “public figure” Kanye West acted as creative director for the Pornhub Awards. This in of itself taps into these tensions. Is the possibility of Ye’s star power fairy dust rubbing off on you worth engaging with – and, by proxy, supporting – such a controversial figure? This was an issue even before the sweatshirt thing.

Writing for Jezebel, Tracy Clark-Flory summed up some interesting insights regarding West and his awards show-subsequent sweatshirt sales. Per Clark-Flory, West recently announced that his Yeezy clothing line will be selling $75 sweatshirts featuring artistic renderings of five performers who won big at the awards — Kendra Sunderland (Nicest Tits), Riley Reid (Most Popular Female Performer), Mia Malkova (Hottest Female Ass), Abella Danger (Splash Zone Top Squirting Performer) and Lena Paul (Top Big Tits Performer).

West’s announcement was met with excitement by many — and chagrin by others. Violet Monroe, Siouxsie Q James,  Jacky St. James and Paul, among many others, called out the possibility of mainstream exploitation.

So @kanyewest used porn performers names and images on merchandise to profit, gave them no compensation for it, and promoted free porn and half the industry is cheering for him just because he is Kanye West???‍♀️??‍♀️??‍♀️ so cool.

— ?Violet Monroe?‍♀️ (@Violet_Monroe) September 7, 2018

He could have at least tagged her. @lenaisapeach what kind of compensation are you getting from these? https://t.co/qOkb7tYrYJ

— Siouxsie Q ??#LetUsSurvive #SexWorkersVote (@SiouxsieQMedia) September 7, 2018

Sunderland, however, fired back, repudiating the discussion of exploitation.

“Point is all of us who have the shirt are happy and grateful. It’s everyone else trying to talk shit and make it a negative thing,” she stated via Twitter. “It’s our faces and our names and if we’re cool with it then quite frankly I don’t think it’s anyone’s business.”

Point is all of us who have the shirt are happy and grateful. It’s everyone else trying to talk shit and make it a negative thing. It’s our faces and our names and if we’re cool with it then quite frankly I don’t think it’s anyone’s business ??‍♀️

— Kendra Sunderland (@KSLibraryGirl) September 8, 2018

Fair enough.

The fact that the performers may not actually own the rights to the images featured on the sweatshirts, thus rendering discussion of their permission and compensation moot, is an important one. But it’s also important to note the possible rock/hard place position the copyright owner, whoever they may be, was put in. Give Ye that picture, or he’ll just get one from someone else! Plus, and not to be all delicate about it, a crass AF “splash zone” sweatshirt will have a wider impact on the public’s perception of performers that’s not limited to Abella Danger and her Yeezy wear.

#justsayin

In another example, yesterday xHamster invited their entire PR list to explore a rendering of “The Deuce”-era Times Square with an interactive map.

According to the PR, in honor of the second season of HBO’s “The Deuce,” xHamster created an interactive map to 1977-era Times Square. The map features the theaters, live shows and bookstores that made Times Square — as well as the Bronx, Queens and Brooklyn — so worthy of mainstream media treatment.

By most accounts, “The Deuce” is a really good show. And that map xHamster made? It’s really cool! (Seriously, you should look at it below.) But just like community gush over a nod from West, rallying around the scraps of mainstream renderings of industry stories feels… icky.

So the question remains: Do you reject the mainstream porno bait outright, or do you ride the wave and hope for the best? There is no correct answer, only varying degrees of exploitation and anxiety-inducing.

One thing I feel is certain, though. As a community, Kanye West is not our friend.

Image of ’70s-era Times Square via xHamster.