Sen. Mike Lee proposes bill that could ban access to internet porn in the US

Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah has introduced a proposal that could essentially ban access to internet porn in the United States. This proposal, if passed, could upend and eradicate the adult film industry.

According to a summary of the bill which Lee released, “it would define it as content that depicts ‘actual or simulated sexual acts with the objective intent to arouse, titillate, or gratify the sexual desires of a person.”

It continues, “Obscenity is not protected speech under the First Amendment and is prohibited from interstate or foreign transmission under U.S. law. But obscenity is difficult to define (let alone prosecute) under the current Supreme Court test for obscenity.”

Now, while it’s legal to produce and gain access to porn via the internet in the U.S., the Supreme Court has a set of standards which can determine if any material is obscene, which is not legally protected.

According to Business Insider, the materials are considered obscene if they are, “prurient interest, “depict” sexual conduct in a patently offensive way,” and lack “serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value.”

The proposal was introduced on the Senate floor Dec. 14, which as of right now, has yet to gain any co-sponsors. 

The Free Speech Coalition, an adult industry advocacy nonprofit, criticized the Senator’s proposal, dismissing it as “yet another attempt by conservatives to censor speech and expression about sex,” as reported by Vice News.