Hardcore_pornography

Hardcore pornography is a form of pornography that features explicit sexual acts. The term was coined in the second half of the 20th century to distinguish it from softcore pornography. It usually takes the form of photographs, often in magazines, or films but it may also appear as a cartoon. Since the 1990s it has been distributed widely over the Internet.

Hardcore pornography was widely prohibited in many countries until the second half of the 20th century when many of the world\'s liberal democracies, experiencing a change in sexual norms, began to allow limited access. Supply is usually regulated by a combination of a classification system and regulation of points of sale, although today hardcore pornography can be easily downloaded from many Internet sites with little regulation. Public display and advertising is often prohibited. Supply to minors is usually prohibited.

Recent history

The development of home videotape in the 1980s significantly increased the distribution of hardcore material because it allowed people to view films in the privacy of their own home, rather than visiting a movie theater, and also because it became easier to make. It became possible for couples to make videotapes of themselves having sex although this is not usually considered to be pornography unless it is distributed for profit.

Legalization

Since 1969, most of the world\'s liberal democracies have taken steps to legalize hardcore pornography, or they increasingly fail to enforce legislation to prohibit it resulting in de facto legalisation. There is often vigorous opposition to legalisation - see anti-pornography movement. The years that hardcore pornography was legalised are roughly as follows:

• Denmark in 1969
• Sweden in 1970
• West Germany in 1973. (East Germany, which never legalized hardcore pornography, was unified with West Germany in 1990.)
• United Kingdom in 2000
• Norway in 2006

In the U.S., legal interpretations of pornography in relation to the constitutional right to free speech differ from state to state.

See also

• Sexual revolution

References

• O\'Toole, L. (1998), Pornocopia: Porn, Sex, Technology and Desire, London, Serpent\'s Tail. ISBN 1-85242-395-1

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