Kristel Penn to Speak at UC Santa Barbara's 'Teaching Porn 2.0' Course

Kristel Penn to Speak at UC Santa Barbara's 'Teaching Porn 2.0' Course

LOS ANGELES — Grooby's longtime Marketing and Creative Director Kristel Penn will be the featured speaker Thursday at University of California, Santa Barbara, as a guest of professor Constance Penley for her course, "Teaching Porn in a Pandemic 2.0."

“My students and I are delighted that Kristel has accepted our invitation to visit my UC Santa Barbara class on Pornographic Cultures, now retitled as ‘Teaching Porn in a Pandemic 2.0,’” Penley said. “Over its 28 years, the course has featured an extraordinary range of creatives and other experts from the adult industry. As the creative and editorial director of Grooby, an activist, humanitarian and entrepreneur, Kristel will generously share her knowledge gained as an industry pioneer in trans erotica and as a prominent advocate for visibility and empowerment through sex-positivity.”

“The students especially want to hear from Kristel about her work on de-stigmatizing the industry and porn consumption,” the professor added. “They also want to learn more about her commitment to creating sex-worker affirming mental health services for the adult industry. My students feel they have much to learn from the adult industry about unashamedly realizing their desires for creative freedom and political expression. None could speak to those desires better than Kristel.” 

Penn won the 2021 XBIZ Exec Award for “Community Figure of the Year” in January, and recently spoke to XBIZ about The Sad But Rad Club, an initiative she created to empower and advocate for her community, particularly in regards to mental health and wellness.

“This has been a longtime professional dream of mine to speak in Professor Penley’s class,” noted Penn. “I sincerely admire the work Professor Penley does to elevate the discussion of sex work and the adult industry in a way that holds the complexities of our community. Professor Penley’s class gives the outside world a really valuable opportunity to learn about an industry that is often villainized and oversimplified in mainstream media."

"I’m honored by the opportunity to speak to the UCSB students about my career at Grooby," Penn said, "and how it has given me a unique platform to speak on topics that are personally important to me, such as de-stigmatizing porn and its consumption, LGBTQ representation and changing the narrative of mental health and wellness."

Constance Penley is a Professor of Film and Media Studies at UC Santa Barbara, and co-edited “The Feminist Porn Book: The Politics of Producing Pleasure” with Tristan Taormino, Mirelle Miller-Young and Celine Parreñas Shimizu.

Follow Kristel Penn on Twitter.

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

Bree Mills Unpacks Power, Pain and Family Ties in New Pure Taboo Film

Bell is shooting a scene for “The Secrets We Share,” a new feature from Pure Taboo and Adult Time — and moments like this remind the crew that they are not out to make just another adult movie.

Cubbi Thompson Stars in Latest From Brazzers

Cubbi Thompson stars with Keiran Lee in the latest release from Brazzers, titled "Slippery Business."

Adult Time Drops Bree Mills' 'Hard Stop Reunion' Documentary, New Scene

Adult Time has released a documentary feature on the recent Bree Mills-helmed drama “Hard Stop” as well as a new cast orgy scene, titled “Hard Stop Reunion Orgy.”

Gal Ritchie Performs Her 1st Anal for Brazzers

Gal Ritchie performs her first anal scene alongside Ricky Johnson in the latest Brazzers release, titled “Say Hello to My Little Arsehole.”

Elegant Angel Premieres Jennifer White Showcase 'Hollywood Whore'

Jennifer White gets the spotlight in a new six-part showcase release from Elegant Angel.

Autumn Rain Headlines Latest From TransSensual

Autumn Rain stars with Little Puck in “Playtime with a TS MILF,” from TransSensual.

Adult Time Releases New 'Out of the Family' Episodes for 'Steptember'

Adult Time has released new episodes of “Out of the Family,” as part of its “Steptember” series programming.

Alina Lopez Stars in Final Installment of Blacked Feature 'The Blueprint'

Alina Lopez stars with Vixen Media Group exclusive Jason Luv in the final installment of Blacked's new feature, "The Blueprint."

Miss Lexa Makes Her Brazzers Debut

Miss Lexa has made her Brazzers debut alongside JMac in the studio's latest release, titled "Miss Lexa Is a Powerhouse."

Mag Numb Leads Latest From PlantsVsCunts

Mag Numb stars in the latest scene from Hentaied studio brand Plants Vs. Cunts, titled “The Book of Curses.”

Show More