The Backpage Defendants Never Stood a Chance
Moral panic plus government power is an inescapably potent combination.
Sex Work
The World's First Libertarian President
Plus: A listener asks the editors about libertarians and "reflexive contrarianism."
Backpage: The Monumental Free Speech Case the Media Ignored
The mere act of publishing sex ads online is enough to send most potential free speech allies scurrying for the exits.
Don't Believe Janet Yellen's Shoddy Wartime 'Girl Math'
Plus: President Joe Biden’s weird economy and Rep. Mike Johnson as the unlikely new speaker of the House of Representatives.
Aella: Is Porn Too Pervasive?
The former OnlyFans star and outspoken libertarian defender of sex workers considers the acceleration of government crackdowns on online porn, the sexual revolution, and sex work.
Is There Too Much Porn?
Join Reason on YouTube and Facebook at 1 p.m. Eastern this Thursday for a discussion with Aella about the escalating government crackdown on online porn, the sexual revolution, and sex work.
In Scathing Rulings, Federal Courts Block Arkansas and Texas Age Verification Laws
Plus: Meta revises controversial "dangerous organizations" policy, a win against civil asset forfeiture in Detroit, and more...
Have We Lost Track of the Trump Indictments Yet?
Plus: Why don't journalists support free speech anymore?
Backpage Founder, Alt-Weekly Entrepreneur, and Free Speech Warrior James Larkin Has Died
Larkin, 74, took his own life on Monday, just a little over a week before he was slated to stand trial for his role in running the web-classifieds platform Backpage.
Dallas Law Against 'Manifesting' Prostitution Declared Unconstitutional
Plus: The right to call neighbor a "red-headed bitch," the case against a Digital Consumer Protection Commission, and more...
Sex Workers Want Rights, Not Rescue
Horrible things are happening to vulnerable people, but we cannot help them by sending groups of vigilantes or law enforcement officers to hunt them.
Court Says Prostitution Law Doesn't Violate First Amendment but Language Should Be Interpreted Narrowly
Plus: Democrats dismiss nonwhite moderates, Schumer wants investigation into energy drink, GOP prosecutors threaten Target over Pride merchandise, and more...
Prosecutors Say Backpage Defendants Shouldn't Be Allowed To Reference the 1st Amendment
Prosecutors also want a judge to take basically all possible defenses off the table.
Maine's Legislature Passes Bill To Partially Decriminalize Prostitution
Plus: Court rules that naked female spa can't exclude transgender women, Biden vetoes bill blocking student loan forgiveness, and more...
The Naked Feminist
Victoria Bateman thinks "my body, my choice" should include how much clothing you wear.
5 Years After the Backpage Shutdown, Sex Workers—and Free Speech—Are Still Suffering
As former Backpage execs await their August trial, the shutdown is still worsening the lives it was supposed to improve.
States Try To Reform Prostitution Laws—for Better and Worse
New bills in six states showcase some right and wrong ways to help sex workers, from full decriminalization to ramping up penalties for prostitution customers.
All Porn Is 'Violence Against Women,' U.K. Parliamentary Committee Says
Plus: The SAFE TECH Act, Reason talks to young conservatives at CPAC, and more...
Actually, Magic Mike's Last Dance Is About the Awfulness of Urban Zoning Regulations
A male stripper takes on London's historic preservation rules in Channing Tatum's latest ode to hot, sensitive dudes.
Another Bogus 'Sex Trafficking Sting' Led by Homeland Security Agents
Plus: Everyone loves conspiracy theories, against national rent control, and more...
Appeals Court Panel Seems Skeptical That FOSTA Doesn't Violate the First Amendment
The 2018 law criminalizes websites that "promote or facilitate" prostitution. Two of three judges on the panel pushed back against government claims that this doesn't criminalize speech.
Louisiana Now Checking IDs for Watching Porn
Plus: Still no House speaker, the gender gap in college scholarships, Meta fined $414 million, and more...
Sen. Mike Lee Wants To Ban Porn by Redefining 'Obscene'
The IODA aims to edit the legal defintion of "obscenity" to allow for the regulation of most pornography. But even if it passes, a nationwide porn ban is unlikely to succeed.
Why Sex Work Should Be Destigmatized, Not Just Decriminalized
Kaytlin Bailey wants to decriminalize—and normalize—the world's oldest profession.
Kaytlin Bailey: Time to Decriminalize—and Destigmatize!—Sex Work
Prostitutes have not only provided a much-in-demand service but helped to push the boundaries of freedom and liberty for millennia.
Woman Reports Rape to Pennsylvania Cops, Winds Up In Prison for Prostitution
Plus: International attitudes about Russia and China, court rules against book publishers merging, and more...
Underage Girls Arrested in Florida 'Human Trafficking' Sting
Once again, policies billed as helping people coerced into prostitution wind up harming those that cops say they're trying to help.
Canadian Sex Workers Fight for Full Decriminalization of Prostitution
Plus: Why China didn't liberalize, rescheduling marijuana could take years, and more…
Retrial of Backpage Execs Wouldn't Be Double Jeopardy, Court Says
Former Backpage executives could now face trial again in 2023, after the government's first attempt resulted in a mistrial.
There's No Way FOSTA Isn't a First Amendment Violation, Says Lawsuit
The case is now on appeal after a lower court said the ban on websites promoting prostitution didn't concern protected speech.
'I Have My Own Life': The Case for Legalizing Sex Work
It would be far easier to prosecute sex trafficking if voluntary sex work were legal.
Review: HeidiWorld Wants You To Rethink Prostitution
Podcaster Molly Lambert's gambit to get listeners to critically examine the conflation of sex work is mostly successful.
What We Know About the FBI's Latest National 'Human Trafficking' Sting
Plus: Book ban enthusiasm ensnares Bible, free speech for nutrition advice, and more...
OnlyFans Star Aella Talks Sex Work Economics
How sex worker Aella went from factory work to OnlyFans stardom and data science research on fetishes
New Footage Shows Bodega Clerk Trying To Avoid Deadly Fight. Will Manhattan D.A. Drop the Murder Charges?
Alvin Bragg campaigned on "ending mass incarceration." But that promise apparently does not apply to Jose Alba.
California Police Can No Longer Arrest Suspected Sex Workers Who Stand Around in Public
The law is an important step, but ending police harassment of sex workers requires decriminalizing the trade entirely.
Chicago Area Fourth of July Shooting Leaves 6 Dead, Dozens Wounded
Plus: Inflation eats up Americans' savings, copyright officials want to protect your fireworks photos, and more...
COVID-19 Measures Magnified the Wars on Drugs and Sex Work
Plus: International Whores' Day, U.S. Postal Service sued over the seizure of Black Lives Matter masks, and more...
A Feminist Debate on Sex Work
Reason's Elizabeth Nolan Brown makes the case for legalizing sex work. Author Julie Bindel wants customers to be held criminally liable.
Feminists Debate Sex Work: The Soho Forum
Reason's Elizabeth Nolan Brown makes the case for legalizing sex work. Author Julie Bindel wants customers to be held criminally liable.
Aella: Libertarian Sex Worker Turned Data Scientist
"I am not okay with you making laws that prevent me from doing what I feel is good for me."
Meet Aella: The Libertarian Rationalist Sex Worker Turned Data Scientist
"I am not okay with you making laws that prevent me from doing what I feel is good for me."
The New Campaign for a Sex-Free Internet
Sex, money, and the future of online free speech
Rhode Island Senators Consider Two Paths To Decriminalizing Prostitution
One bill would repeal a range of laws against sex work, while the other would change them from criminal to civil offenses.
Belgium Decriminalizes Prostitution
Belgium is the first country in Europe to decriminalize selling and paying for sex.
