Ex-Attorney General Calls for Porn Commission

MARINA DEL RAY, Calif. — Edward Meese, former Attorney General under Ronald Reagan, helped organize the U.S Government’s first in-depth study into pornography back in 1985. Twenty years, later he’s calling for another study to assess porn’s imminent “dangers.”

According to Meese, who was interviewed by the public affairs program Full Disclosure Network on Dec. 24, the original “Attorney General’s Commission on Pornography” worked for more than a year to produce an exhaustive study on the effects of sexual content in the 1980s.

It’s findings, according to Meese, were anything but sexy.

“The Commission showed three things,” Meese said. “First, it provided a much more extensive analysis of the harm of pornography than ever before. Secondly, it revealed the close relationship between pornography and organized crime. And third, it revealed the pervasiveness of porn in our society.”

During the interview, which was conducted by Emmy Award winning host Leslie Dutton, Meese said it was time for the government to conduct another study of pornography, one that would take into account the power of the Internet.

“We need a commission or some other body to do a comprehensive look at Internet pornography in the same way the commission looked at it as it was then being distributed [in the 1980s],” Meese said.

Such a study, according to Meese, would point out the harm perpetuated by “special interest groups” in this country who support pornography.

“Today you have special interest groups like librarians who seem to be opposed to having protections for children in libraries,” Meese said, adding that without new restrictions libraries could “become the principal ways in which Internet porn is distributed.”

Meese called for a new comprehensive look at pornography.

“We need to have a commission or some similar body make recommendations for legislation and regulations that would protect children primarily and also prevent illegal porn, both adult and child, from being widely distributed, particularly through public sources.”

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

FSC: California's Device-Based AV Law Does Not Apply to Adult

The Free Speech Coalition (FSC) put out an advisory today explaining that California's new device-based age verification law does not apply to adult websites.

Ohio AG Threatens Action Against 'Major' Adult Sites Over AV Law

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost announced today that his office is sending "notice of violation" letters to 19 adult websites for failure to comply with the state's recently enacted age verification law.

Ukrainian Content Creators on Hook for Nearly $10M in Back Taxes

Content creators in Ukraine owe the equivalent of $9.3 million in back taxes, according to the country's State Tax Service.

Updated: European Patent Office Board of Appeals Revokes EIS GmbH Patent

The European Patent Office (EPO) Board of Appeals last week ruled in favor of pleasure brand LELO in the company's ongoing dispute with Satisfyer parent company EIS GmbH.

Update: Pornhub Will Not Block Ohio, Despite AV Law

Pornhub parent company Aylo will not block access to its websites in Ohio, despite new state age verification rules that came into effect Sept. 30.

Judge Dismisses Some Claims in 'Children of Pornhub' Trafficking Suit

A United States district judge on Friday dismissed some but not all claims against Aylo in a long-running case involving CSAM allegations featured in the influential 2020 New York Times article “The Children of Pornhub.”

Arcom to Expand AV Enforcement to Smaller Adult Sites

The president of French media regulator Arcom revealed on Thursday that the agency plans to escalate its enforcement of age verification rules to include smaller adult sites, starting in late 2025 or early 2026.

Pornhub to Shut Down Access in Arizona Over Age Verification

Aylo will geoblock Pornhub across Arizona starting Sept. 26, when the state’s age verification law, HB 2112, goes into effect.

French Telecoms Mogul Ignites AV Firestorm With Free VPN, Sarcastic Tweet

French billionaire Xavier Niel, founder of telecommunications giant Iliad, sparked a heated debate this week when he appeared to admit that the company's Free Mobile wireless carrier integrated no-cost VPN into its service specifically to circumvent age verification restrictions on adult content.

UPDATED: Michigan Legislators Propose Online Porn Ban

Michigan lawmakers have introduced a bill that would make it illegal to distribute pornography via the internet in the state.

Show More