Pornhub: Sexo Bilionário

This documentary explores the op-ed article that appeared in the Times about SA en CSAM at Pornhub. In doing this, it adds very little, if anything, to the procedings. We get some faces and voices with the article and a bit of extra background but essentially nothing new or groundbreaking. So on that subject the documentary does not go beyond skin-deep, which is fitting.

The added value then, compared to the Times article, is the opinion on the breadth of the industry by the actor and actresses themselves. The difficulty they have monetizing their product, the uncertainty of it al. It's a shame that the lead-in to this actual 'new' material takes most all of the runtime, so it all ends rather too soon and no real resolution or realisation is gained.

For those thinking to watch this for the nekkid ladies: Please don't bother. The whole thing features 3 pairs of naked breasts (6 boobs, if you will) and nothing much more else. So unless your fetish is 'off screen moaning': You'll have to get your rocks off elsewhere.

All in all: Fine concept, subject matter warrants the attention, but the documentary just skims the surface and sits on the Netflix lineup just to draw in people, I fear. Skippable, unless you missed the Times article "The Children of Pornhub" or want to avoid reading it.

Straight from the title and before reading any reviews you'd think this is a documentary on the site we all know (it is advertised in the title) from beginning to end. Well... it is not. It focuses a LOT (and I mean a bloody lot) on the latest ordeal to the point it is over 75% of the whole documentary. To the tech geeks like myself, there is not a single reference to the tons of features that were innovated here and then taken by everyone else. There are also no devs interviewed. It focuses a lot more on the other thing... and not what you'd be looking for should you enter the site, but rather the other nasty stuff that came as collateral.

I'd be lying if I said that the documentary does not present the 2 sides of the coin, it does, but one gets far more screen time than the other. The other problem is the perspective. It is not a coin with two sides, but more of a dice where society and law enforcement play a HUGE role, yet the documentary has a strong bias against the object of study from a moral high ground that should be unacceptable in a documentary.

If you already have a strong mindset against the adult entertainment industry or THAT company in particular, you'll grant this production 10/10 stars. Same as if you consider such activities as sinful or morally unacceptable. To the rest, be warned: nobody is innocent here, reality is much darker than it is presented in this "documentary".

One of the only documentaries to show a balanced view of what happened with pornhub. I hadn't realised the widespread implications of their actions and the ripple effect it has had across the broader internet. Zooming out, these effects are truly terrifying when considering the current and developing legal and political environment.

While the documentary was successful in illustrating Pornhub as a company, I do wish that this was a short series. Having read so much about Pornhub's story, and those surrounding it's scandals, like Exodus Cry and NCOSE (previously Morality in Media), there's a lot which wasn't covered which would have completed the picture. Hopefully Netflix consider this going forward.

We all know what pornography is...or do we? The porn industry is not just boobs and butts. The actual industry is far more nuanced than that. Pornhub was able to capitalize on the selling of content via the Internet, but like a lot of companies, it forgot who was making the content and why. It allowed non-consensual content from non-performers who were not able to profit from their exposure (and likely had no intention of ever being on its' platform). All the while, actual performers were directly affected and their opinion meant very little to the company or to the religious zealots who sought to bring down the company. Again, someone forgot about who was being shown on the platform and why.

This documentary is ultimately disappointing. It doesn't do a good job of explaining the rise of Pornhub as a social phenomenon. It is also afflicted with a severe case of both side ism. What I mean by that is that it gives equal time both to the supporters and detractors of the company. And this has been, a surprisingly dangerous phenomenon in modern journalism. It suggests that if you take one extreme position and contrast it with another extreme position, the result is the truth. But in this case, it clearly can't be so. Either Pornhub did nothing wrong and their users abused the system, or Pornhub did in fact violate laws and help in the exploitation of minors. I think you can find better examinations of the Pornhub phenomenon both its advantages, and it's dangerous than this. For example, there's a great podcast series by John Ronson called the Butterfly Effect.