What Can Porn Do For You?
In July 1995, TIME Magazine published a cover story titled “Cyber Porn,” flashing the unforgettable image of a young boy almost absorbed by the blue light of a computer screen before mortified readers. The widespread adoption of the internet had made access to adult content all too easy. Cue moral panic.
Three decades later, the crusade against porn hasn’t really yielded the intended results. Quite the opposite, in fact: In 2022, the adult entertainment industry was estimated to be worth $58.4 billion. That number is projected to reach $96.2 billion by 2032.
In the age of AI, VR/AR and other advancing technologies can bring your fantasies literally to life. The lines between real and virtual worlds become obliterated with offerings such as cyberbrothels, fantasy playlands, camming, and sex robots.
The criticisms of pornography are valid. Unchecked and unregulated, adult content propagates misogyny and violence, it depicts unrealistic bodies and sexual positions, it can lead to addiction and maladaptive use. Children are at risk of being exposed to adult and inappropriate content far before they can process or contextualize it.
As a sexologist, however, I ask a different question: How can we turn our rampant and persistent consumption of adult content to our individual and social benefit? A more effective way to mitigate the downsides of pornography in society might be to elevate and educate about its positive effects. If you can’t beat ‘em, educate them.
Here are some ways porn can actually help us, rather than harm us.
Porn Reveals Who We Are
The kind of adult content we seek out and consume offers great insight into impulses and desires we don’t express overtly, as well as overarching mindsets and trends.
For instance, 2025 annual Pornhub report reveals that while are 62% of their viewers are still men, women account for a higher percentage of overall viewership in three countries: the Philippines, Colombia and Argentina. What are the sociocultural factors driving this shift in those countries, I wonder?
The report also shows us that for both men and women, “lesbian” and “Japanese” are both top search categories. Isn’t that a useful nugget to bring to couples’ therapy?
And while DEI may out out of vogue in the political realm, in our adult content viewing preferences, it’s alive and well as search terms like “Indian,” “Latina,” and “Korean” made big upwards gains from previous years. Blush.
Porn Reveals Truths About Behavior and Motivation
When it comes to the impact of consuming pornography, the “why” seems to affect whether the outcome is positive or negative. For example, studies show that when couples watch porn together to learn how to do new things, they report lower shame and distress around sex in their relationship in general. Sexual curiosity and openness, it seems, can be enhanced through porn use.
Research also show that women who watch pornography to expand their sexual horizons have more sex and higher sexual satisfaction. Sharing clips with their partner is also a less intimidating way of expressing what they like, one study showed.
By contrast, when men who primarily consume porn solo use it for coping or avoiding a situation, they seem to be more prone to problematic use. Men in these cases report lower sexual arousal, higher hypersexuality and the risk of compulsive behavior.
So, it’s not that you watch porn that’s problematic—it’s why. Understanding your motivations and needs can help drive healthier media consumption as well as relationship dynamics.
Ethical Porn Can Teach You About Sex
When it comes to the problematic depictions of sex and violence and unrealistic bodies and positions, the emerging field of ethical pornography offers a potential solution. Ethical pornography has been defined as adult content that is “made consensually, treats performers with respect, and pays performers and filmmakers fairly for their work.”
Ethical porn features behaviors like actively seeking consent and using protection that are left out of traditional porn scenes; it also showcases a range of bodies, sexual preferences, and pleasure palettes and reflects a wider lens than the typical “male gaze” that shows images from a man’s point of view.
While ethical porn does not solve every problem, these sites are growing in popularity and can be a worthy alternative. Here’s a list of ethical porn sites from Women’s Health and here’s one from Men’s Health. Tell me what you liked.
Porn Literacy Is an Opportunity
A report by Common Sense Media revealed that 54 percent of teens 13 or under had seen online pornography. That number rises to 73 percent for kids 17 and under. Forty-five percent believed that online pornography gives helpful information about sex, but only 27 percent thought it accurately shows sex.
What this tells us is that our kids are curious, overwhelmed, and more discerning than we think. The moment is ripe for education.
Porn literacy education is defined as “a pedagogical strategy intended to increase young people’s knowledge and awareness about the nature of the portrayals of sexuality in internet pornography, including issues such as gender politics, body ideals, and safety.”
While technology will continue to deliver adult and potentially confusing media into the hands of kids, parents and educators can lean into the opportunity for open and safe dialogue. There are many groups across the world offering guidance around porn literacy for children, and they typically suggest youth-led approaches to build ethical sexual citizenship and agency. On ethical porn site Erika Lust, if a user indicates that they are under 18, they are not turned away, they get redirected to a site about basic porn literacy.
In the world of AI, porn is going to be more accessible, more immersive and more pervasive. Let’s see if we can swap out moral panic for informed, ethical and pleasure-positive consumption.
Do you have a favorite ethical porn site? Do tell.
REFRENCES:
https://www.statista.com/statistics/1371582/value-online-website-porn-m…
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13691058.2023.2194355
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00224499.2021.1893261
https://www.pornhub.com/insights/2025-year-in-review
It's interesting- why do you think there is so little ethical porn? You would think there would be a smaller but still substantial subset of it rather than what is currently present and widespread. It might have to do with how sex is viewed overall- control, power, the politics of it.