Porn: is it exploitation?

Who's exploiting whom? Credit: Dominatrix by mikethegreat

The "exploitation" of people in the sex industry for commercialization has coined a word: "Sexploitation". But is it a bad thing?

The sex industry undoubtedly has its objectionable side, but is it inherently exploitative?

I tend to hear the term when applied to women who appear in sex films, who have been hired my male producers. Women certainly have had a raw deal in the employment marketplace, whether they are hired at lower wages than their male counterparts, or are low paid for doing menial jobs.

If this is exploitation, then indeed, women are exploited in porn films, just as they are exploited in any other job.

I've never heard the word exploitation applied to a man performing in a sex film. I wonder whether this is because there is the perception that men always want to have sex, but women want to have sex only in a loving, private relationship. Or perhaps the implication is that women are more virtuous than men, or more gullible. Surely not.

The term "exploitation" is often used in a positive manner. We exploit the land to grow food, we exploit the media to spread our messages. We exploit our efforts, skills and talents to earn money. Can we not exploit our bodies to the same ends?