In an attempt to bring some form of education about sex to porn consumers, Pornhub, the world’s most popular porn free site, launched its own online platform dedicated to education and advice for sexuality, sexual health, and relationships.
Titled the “Sexual Wellness Center,” the site says it will feature written pieces from doctors, therapists, and other experts on the topic of sexuality. The Sexual Wellness Center is a free site, which serves as an online forum for “real talk” about sex. So far, the site covers topics ranging from consent to group sex parties to sexually transmitted diseases and basics like reproductive health.
The massive porn site responsible for creating the Sexual Wellness Center says that as a leading destination for porn, it made sense for the site to provide visitors with information and advice when it comes to sex:
“As a leading provider of adult entertainment, we thought it important that we also offer a platform on which carefully sourced information about all aspects of sexuality be made available to our viewers… Our hope is that our readers will find the website to be accessible, educational and entertaining.”
Related: Can You Guess 2018’S Most-Viewed Categories On The Largest Porn Site?
The site’s Sexual Wellness Center will be led by Laurie Betito Ph.D., a clinical psychologist and author specializing in sex therapy who also partners with organizations involved with American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors and Therapists (AASECT), who are generally pro-porn advocates.
In addition to Betito’s expertise, the site will also feature regular contributions from experts such as transsexual community leader Sophia Banks, and sex coach Stacy Friedman, among others.
Our Take
It’s possible that this truly is a no-gimmicks attempt to bridge the gap of sex education for porn consumers.
With over 33.5 billion visits to this site annually, providing sources for sexual science besides the vast world of sexual fantasy is a move that could potentially remind consumers that porn itself does not provide quality info about sex.
But, despite even the best intentions to provide legitimate facts on the topic of sex, it’s difficult to overlook all the harmful content on Pornhub and how it actively plays a role in warping consumers’ perceptions on sex, consent, and healthy relationships. The fact that hardcore porn featuring suggested searches such as “punished teen” and “crying gangbang” are just one click away from a link on the Center’s home page—with no 18+ or older button—is of serious concern.
The fact is, Pornhub can’t have it both ways.
While this seems to be a move to try and be a reputable source for sex advice and sexual wellness, let’s face reality: this attempt to market itself as a company that can be a one-stop-shop for sex information goes to show that it will stop at nothing in order to lure this generation and the next to their site and get them thinking that watching porn is a normal, harmless, and even an “educational” pastime.
The real truth is found in what neuroscientists are saying about what porn does to the brain. Listen to this fascinating clip of Dr. Donald Hilton Jr., renowned neurosurgeon at the University of Texas, San Antonio, and director of neurosurgical training at the Methodist Hospital rotation.
VIDEO: Neurosurgeon Dr. Donald Hilton Explains Scientific Truths About Porn
As you can see, the harms of porn are very real and science is showing that. Expert accounts like this show that porn twists ideas about sexuality and also fuel the demand for sexual exploitation in society, no matter how it is presented.
Why This Matters
Pornography is not only proven to change the brain and damage relationships, it’s also inseparably linked to sexual exploitation and sex trafficking. To consumers, pornography appears to be a fantasy world of endless pleasure, but to those who create and participate in making porn, their experiences are often flooded with drugs, disease, slavery, rape, and abuse. Watch just a couple of our interviews with porn performers who have since left the industry and you will quickly see that perception is most definitely not reality.
The truth is, while active porn performers rarely (if ever) speak out due to fear of not getting work or being persecuted within the industry, a countless amount of these same porn performers inevitably end up speaking out on their traumatic experiences once they leave the industry. And these stomach-turning personal accounts are never pretty.
No matter their attempt to bring real information about sex to their consumers, this giant porn site is still actively participating in the misinforming and even damaging of millions of consumers (and countless performers) worldwide. No amount of sex advice can undo the harmful sexual exploitation they profit from daily.
Bottom line? A healthy understanding of sex is great, porn is not. Don’t look to a porn site for solid sex advice, whether it be from their videos or “wellness” center.
