Also available in: Deutsch (German)

In 2023, the cultural scientist published the second edition of a book that is worth reading for everyone inside and outside the industry. In addition to a historical overview and some clarification of terms, the book also addresses many arguments that are often levelled against the adult industry. Madita Oeming dissects them – in a scientifically sound manner – in part with relish and refutes many of them.

The author wrote her doctoral thesis on porn addiction, or more precisely: “Porn Addiction – America’s Moral Panic of the Digital Age”. This is certainly an interesting topic, although the term “addiction” is already highly controversial in scientific circles. Adult entertainment has long been an integral and important part of the entertainment industry – and it is precisely as such that Madita Oeming sheds light on the genre. Her approach to the subject is by no means highly scientific. Instead, we learn a lot about the cultural and social facets and their impact on how the industry is perceived by the general public. An examination of this can also be very helpful for insiders.

Youth protection from a scientific perspective

Today, numerous institutions deal with the topic of youth protection and want to enforce ever stricter regulations with ever greater rigour. Apparently no one there has read Madita Oeming’s book.

According to the Federal Centre for Health Education, young people are having sex later and later… Current figures in no way confirm the concern about sexual neglect.

In her book, the author often questions the existence of a “porn generation”, even though studies describe pornography as “probably one of the biggest problems of the internet”. This obviously has little to do with reality, as Madita Oeming also points out:

In her book, the author often questions the existence of a “porn generation”, even though studies describe pornography as “probably one of the biggest problems of the internet”. This obviously has little to do with reality, as Madita Oeming also points out:

The general clamour for age verification systems would perhaps not be quite so loud if institutions such as the KJM were to actually look at the situation with young people – whose network access they (want to) decide on. However, there are also obvious misjudgements in completely different areas.

The myth of the blonde, tall, super-slim protagonist

The idea of the appearance of an average actress also persists in industry circles. Madita Oeming also dispels this notion, citing an analysis of 10,000 profiles:

The result was not a blonde with huge breasts, but: she is 1.65 metres tall, weighs 54 kg, has brown hair and wears a size 34 B bra.

This might surprise some in the industry at first. However, a closer look at the preview images of camp portals or the catalogues of OnlyFans Creators quickly leads to the suspicion that Madita Oeming could well be right here too.

When is a MILF a MILF?

The author also contributes to this discussion. The term originally goes back to Stiffler’s mom in the US comedy “American Pie”. In the years that followed, the figure of the permanently horny mother shaped a category in erotic production that still ranks high today. There is often debate as to when a woman fulfils the required criteria.

In the world of porn, MILF usually only means “over 30 years old”. The average MILF is 33 years old, under 10% are over 40 and under 5% are over 50.

Clearly defined, even if some 31-year-old actresses are probably frowning as soon as they are pigeonholed in this category at such a tender age. However, this should in no way be detrimental to her sales.

The “anti-porn movement” is also discussed

The “PorNO” campaign launched by the magazine “Emma” in the 1980s is critically scrutinised. For example, the gay pornography that was already available at the time was never taken into account in any way, and the campaign, which was adopted from the USA, naturally never succeeded in proving the alleged harmful effects of pornography consumption.

“One third of porn consumers are women”

This assessment is also likely to surprise some in the industry. In fact, payment providers, for example, are likely to vehemently disagree with this breakdown. However, there will certainly be a significant difference in the shares, depending on whether you look at paid or unpaid offers.

Conclusion

Madita Oeming provides an interesting view of the industry from the outside, so to speak, which is otherwise not so easily accessible to many due to operational blindness. She doesn’t take sides, but clearly opposes the stigmatisation of erotica as part of the entertainment music industry. It’s not a teacher with a pointing finger, but the female perspective comes through quite rightly. And it’s simply fun to read how she, for example, scientifically substantiates many of her supposed arguments to the official or even self-appointed youth protectors. Personally, I missed the mention of Larry Flynt, the sadly now deceased pioneer of the industry and Dirty Old Man par excellence. After all, he fought for numerous legal victories against censorship in the USA back in the seventies with great personal commitment and had a significant influence on the perception of the adult biz worldwide.

Bernhard Bradatsch

Directly to the book: https://www.rowohlt.de/buch/madita-oeming-porno-9783499012334

Subscribe to our newsletter and stay up to date: