Fight Over the Appearance of Online Sex Ads

Most people would balk at the idea of having sex ads listed in their advertising section. Some would, but not all, according to a writer for the New York Times. In addition, even fewer would agree to the publication of ads that list minors for sale in sex ads.

At the present time, you know that the press is run, in part, with the weight of their advertisers. Your favorite online blog that you do not pay for a subscription to has to generate revenue from somewhere. Right now, the company, Village Voice Media, has what some would consider as scandalous, what is labeled as the “adult” section in a network referred to as backpage.com.

Within these pages, you will find massage parlors, male and female escorts and, yes, even prostitutes in this section. Most of these services allow for two consenting adults who seek to meet each other under certain terms. However, here and there, a few ads listing minors “for sale” make their way into the classified section in

Jim Larkin and Michael Lacey run Village Voice Media whose current publications include the Village Voice and Phoenix News Times. Not all the sections on Backpage.com are labeled as “adult.” Other listings resemble Craigslist.com, where you will find everything from homes for rent to your neighborhood’s yard sale. The two owners employ a message that anything is considered acceptable within their papers. This approach, however, can backfire, especially when everything is acceptable promotes illegal activity.

Craigslist came under attack in 2010 when a number of state attorney general has accused them of promoting the sale of minors for sex. Craigslist banned their “adult” section in the United States after bearing the brunt of too much pressure.

Over 35 million of the dollars Craigslist made off of sexual advertising found its way to Backpages.com, according to the New York Times. Newspapers and other publications have suffered in the current economy and like many other publishers, the Village Voice Media saw an opportunity to generate revenue though the ads: and, the owners do not plan to back down.

Backpage.com is under siege by 51 of the United States attorney generals, at the present time. The attorney generals sent a letter that demanded the shutdown of the Village Voice Media’s adult section on Backpage. Not only are they seeing flames thrown at them from the governments, they are receiving notes of appeal from religious leaders and organizations who want them to keep America’s boys and girls out of their advertising.

Jim Larken and Michael Lacey, unlike the owners of Craigslist, plan to fight back and take a stand against advertising discrimination. According to Lacey, the more people come after them with bows and arrows, the better job they are doing to attract readership. “We have all these practicing politicians and concerned clergy after us. We must be doing something right,” says Lacey.