“Craigslist is Nothing More than an Internet Brothel”: Sex Work and Sex Trafficking in U.S. Newspaper Coverage of Craigslist Sex Forums

Abstract

In spring 2018 the U.S. federal government forced Craigslist's sex forums closed. A new anti-sex trafficking law, FOSTA-SESTA, made exceptions to the Communications Decency Act, holding websites accountable for online "prostitution." This study used critical discourse analysis to trace how U.S. newspaper articles reported on Craigslist sex forums (N = 280) during 13 years of coverage preceding FOSTA-SESTA. Nearly 70% of the stories (n = 194) covered Craigslist sex forums through frames that emphasized sex work and sex crimes or regulatory efforts against Craigslist, focusing primarily on preventing digital sex trafficking. Newspaper narratives supported online surveillance efforts championed by conservative lawmakers across the country, who used Craigslist as a scapegoat for sex trafficking and online "prostitution." Consensual sex work was symbolically annihilated in coverage-evidence of a dominant representational paradigm that produced epistemic violence against sex workers. Media and policy implications are discussed. We now regularly hear about sex trafficking from journalists like Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times, Hollywood movies like Taken with Liam Neeson, Hollywood celebrities like Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore, with their Real Men Don't Buy Girls campaign, and activists and survivors like Rachel Lloyd and Somaly Mam, who tour the country to speak out against sex trafficking. (Baker, 2013, p. 1) This study examined news coverage of Craigslist sex forums as a critical element of public discourse about digital sex trafficking. Mass media attention made the message clear: "If it's just a sex crime it isn't a story. But if a listing on Craigslist was involved, it's a big story" (Arrington, 2010). Sourcing Practices and the News Net Despite being perceived by the public and many politicians, including the sitting U.S. president, as being politically liberal CONTACT Chelsea Reynolds

Problematizing the Educational Messaging on Sex Trafficking in the US “End-demand” Movement: The (Mis)Representation of Victims and Anti-Sex Work Rhetoric

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