Some Like It Mellow: On Gay Men Complicating Pornography Discourses

Abstract

Despite the proliferation of writing on pornography generally, much of the literature that focuses on gay pornography specifically conforms to either a pro- or anti-porn framework. This overly simplistic dichotomy positions pornography as a homogeneous construct, albeit one that is either "good" or "bad." Even theorists who situate pornography on a continuum, with erotica at one end and hardcore at the other, tend to reify these discourses. Further, it is not uncommon for researchers to draw conclusions about the effects of pornography consumption without defining exactly what pornography is. This ethnographic research draws on qualitative interviews with 20 consumers' of gay pornography in Toronto, Canada. By using a thematic analysis to document the ways in which gay men define, distinguish, and conceptualize gay pornography, five definitional categories were developed: Mellow; Commercial; Raunch; Amateur; and Bareback. These broad conceptualizations are discussed in reference to writing on gay pornography. Our research results emphasize the importance of clear definitions of pornography within pornography research.

Sexually explicit racialised media targeting men who have sex with men online: a content analysis of high-risk behaviour depicted in online advertisements

“…However, when stratified by skin colour, ads featuring Black men alone or together with men of other skin tones were significantly more likely to depict condomless sex compared to ads featuring White or Brown men only. While these findings differ from previous studies of online and offline sexually explicit videos, which showed that condomless sex was less frequently depicted in sexually explicit media (34% and 18% respectively) (Downing et al 2013; Grudzen et al 2009), results are consistent with the anti-pornography discourse arguing that sexually explicit media breeds and reinforces racial and sexual stereotypes (Corneau and van der Meulen 2014; Fung 2005; Kendall and Funk 2004). These findings have implications for men who have sex with men who are unintentionally exposed to sexually explicit ads online.…”

“…For example, Hald and colleagues (2013), in a 2013 cross-sectional study of men who have sex with men, found that 97% of participants reported positive effects of sexually explicit media consumption, such as increased knowledge of sex and identity, heightened sexual enjoyment, and improved attitudes toward sex. Other positive potential effects discussed in the literature include the role of male-male sexually explicit media as a form of resistance against homophobia and tool for gay men’s liberation, the potential for sexually explicit media to validate one’s sexual identity, and the use of sexually explicit media as a source of sexual health information (Kubicek et al 2011; Hald, Smolenski, and Rosser 2013; Morrison 2004; Rosser et al 2012; Corneau and van der Meulen 2014). Researchers looking to develop HIV prevention interventions for men who have sex with men might therefore consider harnessing the positive attributes of sexually explicit media in these interventions.…”

Pornography use in sexual minority males: Associations with body dissatisfaction, eating disorder symptoms, thoughts about using anabolic steroids and quality of life

“…For example, a content analysis of pornographic videos sold in Australia found that pornographic actors were frequently highly muscular with notably idealised and unrealistic genitalia (McKee et al, 2008). Thus, the use of pornography has the potential to promote body dissatisfaction relating to various body image domains, and males may be particularly susceptible to such effects by virtue of their high levels of use (Corneau and Van der Meulen, 2014; Tylka, 2015).…”

‘Power to the reader’ or ‘degradation of literary taste’? Professional critics and Amazon customers as reviewers of The Inheritance of Loss

“…Other examples include Hermes’s (1995) study of ‘repertoires’ (see Potter and Wetherell, 1987) in discourse on reading women’s magazines, Fowler’s (2000) analysis of aesthetic standpoints appealed to in public responses to Salman Rushdie’s The Satanic Verses (1988), and Kuiken and Miall’s (2001) procedure for identifying and enumerating meaningful categories within narratives about reading experiences. In more recent studies, Swann and Allington (2009) investigate how particular aspects of novels became topicalised in booktalk, Mackay and Tong (2011) identify the frequency of different forms of interaction in responses to BBC World Service stories, and Corneau and van der Meulen (2014) identify the informal generic categories into which gay consumers divide pornography for purposes of discussion (e.g. ‘mellow’, ‘amateur’, and ‘bareback’).…”