Cover photo credit to Marvel Studios, retrieved from CNN.com.
Some people are okay with sexual objectification…but not us.
Have you heard of Rule 34 of the internet?
It’s a sad truth that internet porn is more varied than just about anything else you can find online. The infamous Rule 34 of the internet—a comical list of protocols and conventions which first appeared years ago on a popular online forum—states, “If it exists, there is porn of it. No exceptions.”
So, if you can think of a pornographic scenario, theme, or style—no matter how random or innocent it may seem—then such porn will already have been made and will be available online. If it’s somehow not out there, then it is only a matter of time before such porn is made.
Nothing is safe from the porn industry’s objectification. Not even record-breaking movies based on superhero comics.
A 2,912% surge in Avengers searches
Ahead of the blockbuster release of the latest Avengers movie this week—which is already breaking box office records—there has been a huge surge in searches for Marvel characters in explicit scenarios. Don’t believe us? Take it from the world’s most popular free porn site.
According to Pornhub’s Insights:
“When the last Avengers Infinity War movie was released in 2018, it caused a 356% surge in ‘Avengers’ searches on Pornhub. At the time, that seemed like a sizable increase for an already popular search term. That was then, and Avengers Endgame is now… With plenty of spoilers making their way around the internet, ‘Avengers’ searches increased an incredible 2,912% on April 19th, when compared to their pre-April 16th average. In real numbers, that’s an additional 2 million searches over 7 days.”
Wow. But that’s not all.
In addition to the searches containing “Avengers,” Pornhub also shared that major Marvel characters also peaked in popularity. Classy.
What does all of this mean?
Our porn-saturated culture can’t leave popular or much-beloved stories and characters alone—it has to make them sexual and objectifying. Not cool.
It’s time we put an end to the porn industry getting a free pass when it comes to the objectification and dehumanization of otherwise awesome stories and characters. If you’re on board, join us in speaking out that this isn’t acceptable.
People aren’t products or simply a collection of body parts to be used, viewed, and discarded. With research continually showing how harmful porn is, we can take a stand against these harmful ideals, fight for our humanity, and give a voice to those who can’t fight for themselves—even if they’re fictional characters out to save the universe.
Your Support Matters Now More Than Ever
Most kids today are exposed to porn by the age of 12. By the time they’re teenagers, 75% of boys and 70% of girls have already viewed itRobb, M.B., & Mann, S. (2023). Teens and pornography. San Francisco, CA: Common Sense.Copy —often before they’ve had a single healthy conversation about it.
Even more concerning: over half of boys and nearly 40% of girls believe porn is a realistic depiction of sexMartellozzo, E., Monaghan, A., Adler, J. R., Davidson, J., Leyva, R., & Horvath, M. A. H. (2016). “I wasn’t sure it was normal to watch it”: A quantitative and qualitative examination of the impact of online pornography on the values, attitudes, beliefs and behaviours of children and young people. Middlesex University, NSPCC, & Office of the Children’s Commissioner.Copy . And among teens who have seen porn, more than 79% of teens use it to learn how to have sexRobb, M.B., & Mann, S. (2023). Teens and pornography. San Francisco, CA: Common Sense.Copy . That means millions of young people are getting sex ed from violent, degrading content, which becomes their baseline understanding of intimacy. Out of the most popular porn, 33%-88% of videos contain physical aggression and nonconsensual violence-related themesFritz, N., Malic, V., Paul, B., & Zhou, Y. (2020). A descriptive analysis of the types, targets, and relative frequency of aggression in mainstream pornography. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 49(8), 3041-3053. doi:10.1007/s10508-020-01773-0Copy Bridges et al., 2010, “Aggression and Sexual Behavior in Best-Selling Pornography Videos: A Content Analysis,” Violence Against Women.Copy .
From increasing rates of loneliness, depression, and self-doubt, to distorted views of sex, reduced relationship satisfaction, and riskier sexual behavior among teens, porn is impacting individuals, relationships, and society worldwideFight the New Drug. (2024, May). Get the Facts (Series of web articles). Fight the New Drug.Copy .
This is why Fight the New Drug exists—but we can’t do it without you.
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Will you join us? We’re grateful for whatever you can give—but a recurring donation makes the biggest difference. Every dollar directly supports our vital work, and every individual we reach decreases sexual exploitation. Let’s fight for real love: