http://www.queensu.ca/epu/mehta/porn.htm A content analysis of pornographic images on the Internet Michael D. Mehta, Ph.D. and Dwaine E. Plaza, B.A., M.E.S. Queen's University and York University Copyright October 1994 -- not to be quoted from without permission * Please note - Tables are not included in this electronic version. Abstract We examined the nature and content of 150 randomly selected pornographic images available through newsgroups located on the Internet computer network. Using content analysis, we identified themes that appear most frequently and explored differences in the type of material posted by commercial and non-commercial users. Results suggest that commercial vendors are more likely to post explicit pornographic material in public access newsgroups to attract new customers to their private, pay-per-use bulletin board services. Key words: computer, pornography, Internet, content analysis. Introduction: Although there have been content analyses of sexually explicit magazines (Winick, 1985), pornographic comics (Scott & Cuvelier, 1993; Palmer, 1979), soft core magazines (Malamuth & Spinner, 1980), and erotic videos (Garcia & Milano, 1990; Palys, 1986), a paucity of research addressing the content of computer pornography exists. This article provides a study of pornographic images located in public access UseNet newsgroups prior to the wide-scale commercialization of the Internet. Additionally, a comparison of the type of pornographic images posted by anonymous, non-commercial users with material posted by commercial vendors is used to illustrate how the rapid growth of the Internet is outpacing regulation. Social scientists and feminist social commentators have conducted substantial research on the effects of pornography on attitudes of men toward women (Zillman & Bryant, 1984), sexual aggression against women (Baron & Straus, 1989; Donnerstein, Linz, & Penrod, 1987; Padgett, Brislin-Stutz, & Neal, 1989), and the role that pornography plays in perpetuating sexual discrimination (Dworkin & MacKinnon, 1988; Dworkin, 1985). Taken as a body, this work is inconclusive and often contradictory. The potential of the Internet to disseminate vast amounts of pornographic material within an unregulated marketplace with a large, international audience needs to be considered. Social scientists, however, should be cautious when assessing the impact of computer pornography on society, not because this pornography is new and different from erotic magazines and videos, but rather because the distribution of pornography via computer networks represents a new use for the technology of the "global village." The Internet has evolved over the past 25 years from a U.S. Defense Department tool for assisting with scientific research to a commercially-oriented communications network. As a research tool, the Internet helps users to share information with minimal costs. One of the biggest benefits of using this network is that long distance charges do not apply. Until recently, these costs and others were absorbed by the U.S. National Science Foundation in its administration of the central "backbone" of the Internet. However, this is now changing. The quasi-public "information superhighway" is now facing new challenges as the first stage of privitization begins. Because an ever increasing proportion of the Internet's rapid growth consists of commercial traffic, a conflict with the National Science Foundation's "acceptable use" policy exists. This policy restricts use of the Internet to research only. Consequently, commercial interests are rapidly transforming the face of the network by using it as a tool for profit and as a market to exploit. Branwyn (1993) estimated that the number of computer networks linked through the Internet is approximately 1.3 million worldwide, with an estimated 14 to 15 million individual users growing at a rate of 25% every three months. This rapid growth and increased interconnectivity is providing users with access to several sources of information. No longer is it necessary for computer users to procure software from retail outlets like computer and software stores. The Internet allows users the opportunity to download software without ever leaving the comfort and privacy of their homes and offices, thus ensuring the anonymity of users retrieving software, such as pornographic material. Computer pornography has moved from simple images composed of alphanumeric characters to more sophisticated digitized, moving images. A variety of computer pornography including soft core "erotic" images of male and female models, animated serials, sexually explicit moving images, interactive sex games, and virtual reality-based types of cybersex is available (Robinson & Tamosaitis, 1993). Essentially, pornographic images that can be viewed on a computer screen are no different in type or nature from images readily available in erotic magazines or videos. In fact, many images come directly from such magazines and videos. However, because users select which images are posted, it is unlikely that pornographic images on the Internet will have the same frequency of themes as images in sexually-oriented magazines and videos. Pornographic images may be posted on newsgroups in two ways. In one way, material may be posted anonymously by individual users from any location. That is, individuals with access to a scanner or a digital camera can scan images from pornographic magazines and videos or take photographs that can then be posted in one or more newsgroups. Alternatively, images may be posted by businesses such as bulletin board services, software companies, "sex shops," or graphic design firms. Perhaps commercial vendors believe that public domain space like newsgroups provides a good opportunity freely to advertise their products or services. Assuming that commercial distributors have greater awareness of the legal implications of distributing explicit pornographic material, and that responsibility for posting such material can be directly traced to them, we hypothesized that there is a greater likelihood of finding explicit material posted by anonymous, non-commercial users. Although the rapid growth of the Internet has created many regulatory gaps, we believe that commercial vendors will not risk arousing public concern, precisely because the new regulations that are bound to accompany increased commercialization of the network may eventually prove to be overly restrictive. Additionally, because these online services offer more than just access to computer pornography, the risk of jeopardizing their entire commercial operation may be too large a gamble. Sample A sample of 150 randomly selected pornographic images were downloaded from newsgroups on the Internet. Newsgroups were selected based on our interpretation of whether the name assigned to such groups suggested that sexually- oriented material was present (e.g., alt.binaries.pictures. erotica, alt.sex.bondage). Of the 4937 newsgroups available on our university's system on 18 April 1994, 17 alternate newsgroups that provided sexually-oriented image files were identified. The sample was obtained using proportionate random sampling. The size of the newsgroup in proportion to the total number of graphic files available in all 17 newsgroups determined the relative frequency of files selected from each newsgroup. A random number table was then used to select specific graphic files from the available pool of images. Measures Frequency and percent of features and themes: Because each image coded may contain multiple combinations of themes, the number of images containing specific themes plus the percentage of themes present within the sample were calculated. We also compared the frequency of variables from our findings with the frequencies from other content analyses on pornographic magazines and videos. Comparison between commercial and non-commercial images: We used the correlation coefficient phi to compare each variable along the mode of distribution dimension. Phi is a symmetric measure of association for 2 X 2 crosstabulations used when comparing non-parametrically distributed variables. A one-tailed test of significance using .05 as a cut-off value was employed. Intercoder reliability: Because images were dichotomously coded and nominally scaled, it was necessary to use kappa as a measure of agreement. Kappa was calculated using the crosstabulation function in SPSS PC for Windows (Version 6.0), taking into account the amount of agreement expected by chance. According to Landis and Koch (1977), kappa values greater than .75 indicate excellent agreement beyond chance, values between .40 and .75 indicate fair to good agreement beyond chance, and values less than .40 indicate poor agreement beyond chance. Mean kappas for each variable by each pair of coders was then calculated. Variables with mean kappas below .40 were dropped from subsequent analysis. Procedure We developed a coding scheme by adapting several content analysis categories used in previous research to analyze erotic videos, magazines, and cartoons (e.g., Garcia & Milano, 1990; Palys, 1986; Winick, 1985; Palmer, 1979). In addition, new categories related to how computer pornography is displayed were also developed (e.g., color versus black-and-white images, relative quality of images, digitized or animated images). Each category is briefly described in Table 1. A two-stage coding procedure was used in this study. In the first stage, we individually rated the sample of 150 images by assigning one or more content categories, based on central themes, to each image in the sample. Content categories were coded for either their presence or absence. Concern about intercoder reliability led to a second round of coding of a random subsample of 35 images. We and two female graduate students in the social sciences worked independently to code this subsample. The two female coders were not told the hypothesis but were made aware of coding procedures by both oral and written instructions. Both coders had little prior exposure to pornography in any form. Results Kappa reliability coefficients were calculated for each variable among the four coders on a sample of 35 images. The overall mean kappa for all raters across the 22 themes is .67 indicating a good to fair degree of intercoder reliability (Landis & Koch, 1977). Table 2 shows some discrepancy between male and female coders on the variables for quality, close-ups, homosexual sex, use of a foreign object, images of children/adolescents, anal penetration, bondage and discipline, and ejaculation. We hypothesized that these discrepancies arose from limited coder training and distress in viewing explicit images that one female coder particularly mentioned. Nevertheless, the mean intercoder reliability fell below .40 only for the quality and frontal nudity variables, which we dropped from the analysis, as they fall into Landis and Koch's poor agreement category. Table 3 shows the percentage of features and themes found in a sample of pornographic images on the Internet. Of the 150 pornographic images analyzed, 65% are distributed non-commercially by anonymous network users, 81% are color, and 92% are digitized. The most prevalent themes are close- ups (43%), erect penises (35%), fetishes (33%), and masturbation (21%). We compared our results with other content analyses to determine whether computer pornography differed in theme from magazine and video pornography. We found that fellatio was present in 15% of our sample, compared with Garcia and Milano's (1990) finding of 8.1% for fellatio. For homosexual sex, we found that 18% of our sample contained this theme, whereas Winick (1985) and Garcia and Milano (1990) obtained much lower levels, in the 2-4% range. Finally, group sex appeared in 11% of computer pornography but in only 1-3% of other pornography (Winick, 1985; Garcia & Milano, 1990). These results suggest that the criteria for selecting what material to post on the Internet are different from those used by magazine and video producers. Our hypothesis -- that explicit pornographic material is more likely to be posted by anonymous, non-commercial users -- is not supported by analysis. Table 4 shows bivariate cross-tabulations using mode of distribution as the independent variable. This analysis shows six significant differences between the type of material posted by commercial and non-commercial users. Contrary to our hypothesis, commercial vendors generally post more images that contain explicit themes than do non-commercial distributors. For example, themes like close-ups (phi=.16, p<.05), erect penis (phi=.18, p<.05), use of a foreign object (phi=.26, p<.001), fellatio (phi=.20, p<.05), images of children/adolescents (phi=.21, p<.01) are more likely to be posted by commercial vendors. The only theme with greater frequency in non-commercially distributed pornographic images is cunnilingus (phi= .16, p<.05). Discussion We examined the nature and content of 150 randomly selected pornographic images available through newsgroups on the Internet. Our findings suggest that pornography on the Internet is readily available in a large quantity to any determined user. As well, differences were found in the type of material posted by commercial and non-commercial users. Specifically, commercial users appear to be more likely to post explicit pornographic material in public access newsgroups. This finding fails to support our hypothesis that there is a greater likelihood of finding explicit pornographic material posted by anonymous, non- commercial users. Most images in our sample appear to be taken directly from magazines and videos. Apparently, non-commercial users select these images, unfettered by editorial considerations or local obscenity laws. In this respect, they differ from magazine and video producers, who need to include a wide variety of sexual content to sell their product to as large a market as possible. Users of the Internet who post sexually explicit material, however, do not have to worry about such promotional considerations, because they are uploading images irrespective of sequencing, editing, or lay-out. This selection process suggests that pornographic images on the Internet tend to represent the dominant interests of network users. Commercial distributors of pornography on the Internet post material to attract new customers to private, pay-per- use bulletin board services. The fast growth of the Internet, coupled with a weak regulatory environment and a fiercely competitive market, is probably responsible for this shift from the Internet as a research tool to an electronic information marketplace. In such a marketplace, commercial vendors need to provide users with services that are not only superior to those provided by their competitors, but also with services not available "free of charge" by other network servers. Consequently, commercial vendors advertising their services and products in newsgroups would attract more attention by posting sexually explicit pornography. It appears as though the lack of regulation on the Internet makes taking these risks worthwhile. Although commercial vendors are more likely to post sexually explicit images than are non-commercial distributors, they do not usually post a statistically significant different amount of material depicting illegal sexual acts, such as bestiality. Perhaps commercial vendors are willing to take minor risks posting images that depict explicit material showing close-ups, erect penises, use of foreign objects, and fellatio, but not to take larger risks. Our study reveals, however, that commercial vendors are more likely to post images of children and adolescents than are non-commercial distributors. We believe that the reason commercial vendors are more likely to post images showing children and adolescents might be that the nature of the medium is attractive to users with interests in this area who may have difficulty or face greater risks obtaining such material in more conventional adult book stores and similar venues. This result can also be explained somewhat but our coding procedure too. If an image was accompanied by text suggesting that subjects were under the age of 18, we coded this image as a "hit." In other words, models in such coded images may be technically adults by age, but props or descriptors give the illusion of being an adolescent. As a qualifier, the vast majority of the small number of such images depicting children and adolescents probably come from nudist magazines or are taken by those who have visited such communities. We never came across an image depicting a sexual act between an adult and a child/adolescent, or acts between children. Our analysis is limited only to UseNet newsgroups, although several others sources of computer pornography exist. A more thorough approach for assessing pornography on the Internet would involve examining not only newsgroups but also bulletin board services and file transfer protocol (FTP) servers. Nevertheless, the simplicity associated with perusing newsgroups probably means that this source of information is used by the majority of Internet users retrieving pornographic material. A second limitation of our study is that we only selected images from newsgroups with names suggesting that sexually-related material is present. Therefore, newsgroups with words like sex, pictures, homosexual, and bestiality in their name were automatically included in our sample. Unfortunately, other newsgroups with names that are cryptic or non-specific may also contain sexually-related material. Unless one searched through every possible newsgroup (approximately 5 000 and growing), it would be impossible to ensure that all pornography is accounted for. A third limitation with our study is that we only analyzed single-series graphic image files (e.g., gif, jpeg). In addition to these types of graphic images, there are also more advanced types of image files that simulate movement (e.g., mpegs). To view these moving images, users require computers with fast central processing units and large amounts of random access memory. Our limited access to such equipment restricted this study to only single- series graphic image files. This shortcoming, however, presents little threat to the validity of our findings because most images currently available on Internet newsgroups tend to be gif and jpeg files. Future researchers in this area should examine a multitude of related issues: Will increasing commercialization of the Internet lead to a change in the type of pornography available? How does computer pornography differ, if at all, from other types of pornography? How is computer pornography being used, and by whom? As more people spend greater amounts of their time using computers and navigating through computer networks, these other questions need to be addressed. In conclusion, not only does the Internet possess the potential to overcome geographical, social, and political barriers and to act as a medium for the exchange of ideas, but it also has the potential to undermine local laws, customs, and mores in its currently unregulated form. The Internet has outpaced current rules and regulations regarding intellectual property rights, definitions of obscenity, publication bans, and government excise mechanisms. As a result, it is necessary for others to replicate this study to document how computer pornography is changing. Over time, we expect that the content of computer pornography will reflect changes in how technology is regulated within the new "global village." References Baron, L., & Straus, M. A. (1989). Four theories of rape in American society. New Haven: Yale University Press. Branwyn, G. (1993). Compu-sex: Erotica for cybernauts. The South Atlantic Quarterly, 92, 779-791. Donnerstein, E., Linz, D., & Penrod, S. (1987). 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