Re: Townsend

[Donna Halper <dlh@donnahalper.com>]

>it was written--
>
>I'm certainly no expert, but do you mean that if someone legitimately
>wants to write a book on the internet child porn industry they would face
>charges if they went on line to  research the topic?

That is my concern too.  I am certainly not a pornographer and do not have 
a collection of pornographic videos, but as part of courses I have taught, 
I have had to watch and critique all kinds of videos; that has included 
"adult" videos, since I have taught courses about law and media 
ethics.  While many of these videos were uncomfortable for me to sit 
through, I would be even more uncomfortable to see anyone who bought one 
arrested.  This could easily turn into a McCarthy-esque sort of 
witch-hunt.  Now, that having been said, I don't think children should be 
in videos against their will, and it goes without saying that porn videos 
exploit kids.  BUT, just because somebody looks at a "nasty" video doesn't 
necessarily mean they are an evil person or a potential criminal.  I would 
be more interested in seeing adults who exploit young kids prosecuted, as 
opposed to prosecuting people who only watch the videos.