Backpage.com’s CEO Is No-Show at Senate Hearing

Backpage.com’s CEO Is No-Show at Senate Hearing

WASHINGTON — Senators investigating sex trafficking blasted the CEO of Backpage.com for failing to show up at a hearing this week despite being subject to a subpoena.

U.S. Sens. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) also are considering Justice Department to examine the case for a possible charge of criminal contempt of Congress.

Portman said the committee called Backpage.com CEO Carl Ferrer to testify about the site’s adult services advertising pages.

But Ferrer’s attorneys told the committee the day before the hearing that he would be out of the country and that were he to testify he would likely invoke his Fifth Amendment right to avoid self-incrimination.

At the hearing, a representative from the National Center for Exploited and Missing Children (NCEMC), testified that 71 percent of child sex trafficking reports submitted to its tipline relate to Backpage.com. The rep cited several Backpage.com business practices inconsistent with the center's standards.

Portman said it “may justify a referral to the Department of Justice for criminal contempt” and noted that Ferrer’s decision not to testify “a clear act of contempt.”

Just this week, a federal appeals court ordered the Cook County Sheriff’s Department to halt lobbying major credit card companies that do business with Backpage.com.

Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart was sued by Backpage in July after he successfully placed pressure on Visa and MasterCard to stop processing credit card transactions for Backpage. Dart said the the pressure was necessitated by “years of growth in the ... sex trade.”

Related:  

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

Florida AG Sues EU-Based Adult Companies for Failing to Age-Verify Users

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed a lawsuit Monday with the 12th Judicial Circuit Court of Florida against five EU-based adult companies for allegedly failing to require age verification before allowing access to adult content.

SkyPrivate Launches 'Telegram Pay-Per-Minute' Feature

SkyPrivate has launched a new pay-per-minute (PPM) private show option on Telegram.

Pineapple Support to Host 'Money and Mental Health' Online Event

Pineapple Support is hosting a free, online event to help performers balance financial wellbeing with mental health, Aug. 18-19.

Arcom Warns 5 Adult Sites Over Age Verification

French media regulator Arcom has sent enforcement notices to the operators of five adult websites that the agency says have failed to implement age verification as required under France’s Security and Regulation of the Digital Space (SREN) law.

MojoHost Debuts NVIDIA Blackwell-Powered Hosting

MojoHost has announced the launch of NVIDIA Blackwell-powered hosting featuring RTX 6000 Pro MaxQ GPUs.

FSC: Identity Theft Targeting Adult Performers

The Free Speech Coalition has put out an alert warning of an individual found to be targeting adult performers for identity theft.

Assylum.com Implements New Age Verification System

Assylum.com has introduced an age verification system across its member sites.

European Commission to Assess Pornhub, XVideos, XNXX Compliance With Digital Services Act

The European Commission plans to conduct a study to determine how well adult sites Pornhub, XVideos and XNXX are addressing illegal content and other potential harms under the EU’s Digital Services Act.

German Higher Court Upholds Ban on PornHub, YouPorn

The Higher Administrative Court of Rhineland-Palatinate on Thursday upheld a “network ban” on Aylo-owned adult sites Pornhub and YouPorn for failing to comply with German age verification regulations.

Alabama Notifying Adult Sites of New Tax Set to Take Effect Sept. 1

The Alabama Department of Revenue has begun sending notices to adult site operators about a new 10% tax on their revenues, set to be enforced starting Sept. 1.

Show More