FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CYBERSPACE (July 21, 2014) - Sssh.com, sponsor of the upcoming "Women in Porn: Shattering the Myths" online debate, has announced that the discussion will be moderated by Dr. Chauntelle Tibbals, an embedded public sociologist whose fields of specialty include gender, sexuality, work and organizations, new media, and popular culture. It also announced that the final panelist to take part in the discussion will be noted attorney and author Frederick Lane.
Sssh.com founder Angie Rowntree said that Dr. Tibbals has been instrumental in organizing “Women in Porn: Shattering the Myths,” and is "deeply informed on all the issues we want to cover."
"Chauntelle has been researching the adult industry for over 10 years, and is one of the few academics who has taken the time to consider the industry's nuances and approached it with an open mind," Rowntree said. "She's is the perfect person to moderate this discussion, and has been an amazing resource for us during the planning of the debate."
Rowntree also had good words to say about Lane.
"As someone who has studied and written about the adult entertainment industry extensively and who also serves on the advisory boards of organizations that tend to be quite critical of porn, Fred has a good understanding of the issues this discussion will examine," she said.
Lane has appeared on a variety of programs and media outlets to discuss the impact of pornography on society, including 60 Minutes, The Daily Show, MSNBC, and NPR's Marketplace. He has also lectured across the United States on the pornography industry and the culture wars and has served as a consultant to the U.S. Department of Justice during its defense of the Child Online Protection Act. Lane serves on the advisory boards of Enough.org and S.E.S.A.M.E. (“Stop Educator Sexual Abuse Misconduct & Exploitation”) and is a founding member of The Ethics Consortium. He is the author of several books on the interaction between culture and technology, including The Decency Wars: The Campaign to Cleanse American Culture.
Dr. Tibbals' research has been published in numerous scholarly journals including Sexualities, Gender Work & Organization, Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, and Stanford Law and Policy Review. She has been quoted and cited extensively by cultural and news media outlets including CNN, Business Insider, Slate, and NPR.
Dr. Tibbals said that helping to organize the event "has been extremely rewarding."
"As a sociologist and social justice advocate, it's been wonderful to contribute to an event that's working to broaden public understanding by encouraging multiple perspectives," Tibbals said. "Not everyone has to agree, but everyone's voice is worth consideration. I am excited to help break down the 'talking about' and encourage the 'talking to.'"
“Women in Porn: Shattering the Myths” is an interactive panel discussion pitting prominent women working in the adult entertainment industry against some of the industry's harshest critics to debate the nature of the industry and women's changing role in it. Previously announced panelists include Penthouse Managing Director Kelly Holland, adult performer/director Ashley Fires, and MakeLoveNotPorn.com co-founder Cindy Gallop.
Rowntree said that in addition to giving women in the adult industry an opportunity to respond to some of the criticisms frequently directed at them, the panel will "reexamine old assumptions about the industry." In particular, the discussion will address whether porn is really always exploitative of women or if it may have an empowering effect, as well.
"More and more, women are found in the board rooms and director's chairs in this industry. This is changing the nature of porn and the way the public perceives it," noted Rowntree. "Critics of the porn industry basically deny that these changes are taking place, or argue that women are just pawns in the game. Among other things, this event gives us an opportunity to engage these points head on."
“Women in Porn: Shattering the Myths” will take place July 22 at 3 p.m. Eastern time, and will be available to viewers free of charge on MindBrowse.com. It also will be live-tweeted and monitored at @ssshforwomen under the hashtag #WomenInPorn. Viewers may interact during the event and pose their own questions and points under the #WomenInPorn, which may then be discussed by the panelists, as well.
