Much of today’s pornographic material is catered toward straight male needs or fantasies. If you were to quickly scroll through a typical porn website, you’d find that the majority of videos contain sex elements that only men would enjoy. The camera usually only shows different angles of the woman and her facial expressions, while the men get little to no camera time. It makes sense because if the typical porn consumer is usually a man, why would they want to look at a male porn star who doesn’t arouse them?
The porn industry is problematic because women are objectified. Some videos appear to encourage rough or violent behavior against women. Common searches in porn websites include “rough sex,” “BDSM” and “gagging,” with the male porn actor as the dominant partner in all of these types of videos. The way women are portrayed in porn also seems to encourage disrespectful behavior toward women during sex. The female porn actresses act dumb or crass and the male actors call them disrespectful names.
Some argue that the existence of pornography in general is debilitating to feminists’ goals because of the misrepresentation and treatment of women. However, the porn industry is not making these types of videos for the purpose of promoting misogyny or disrespect for women. The main goal is to earn the maximum amount of revenue they can based on what the average consumer wants.
The porn industry, like any other industry, recognizes that if there is a stronger demand for a specific good or service, then supply for that good or service will increase. Therefore, if most men fantasize about having sex with a busty, submissive blonde who obnoxiously moans and screams out loud every 10 seconds, then that is the type of porn that we are all — as a society — going to get.
This is actually good news for women because it means that changing the way women are portrayed in pornography wouldn’t be difficult at all if more women consumed pornography. Then the demographics of general porn consumers would undergo a radical shift. More women will search for female-friendly pornographic material, such as videos that try to emphasize the romance, beauty and sensuality of sex. Views on videos that appeal to women would skyrocket. In response to the changing trend, the porn industry would cater material toward female-friendly interests.
However, this shift will require overcoming significant social boundaries. Most women and girls feel extremely uncomfortable or ashamed of expressing their sexuality or need for sex. It is clearly more socially acceptable for men to openly discuss anything related to sex, consume porn and masturbate, while women are often encouraged at a young age to cherish their virginity and suppress sexual exploration, including masturbation to porn. And if some women do openly express their interest in sex, they are immediately judged or — the more modernized expression— “slut-shamed.” The notion that women are less interested in sex than men is a myth, but it’s easy to believe that it’s true because the fear of being judged by others as a “slut” encourages most women to avoid sexual exploration.
Despite these obstacles though, I believe that we are slowly moving toward sexual liberation for women. As more women choose to embrace their sexual freedom, the needs of overall porn consumers will redefine portrayals of women in porn.