Hunter Moore, the controversial founder of one of my favorite websites, Is Anyone Up, is profiled in a Village Voice cover story.
The article is not favorable, painting Moore as an immoral creep who urges people to send him explicit photos of their former lovers and sex partners. Then he posts them on his site for the world to see! And then the “victims” are traumatized forever!
How outrageous! Moore is the devil!
Maybe. But a lot of the young “victims,” in lusty poses and flashing skin, appear to be having fun being sex objects! Even though the site is “revenge porn” and Moore’s commentary is smarmy, the mood is rather celebratory and liberating. In fact, Moore says that many of the photos are self-submitted.
It’s an exhibitionistic new generation, and Moore posts a steady stream of photos of gals and guys. He’s an equal opportunity exploiter!
The Voice article is depressingly square, and just reinforces the prudish notion that people should be ashamed of their bodies—and that everyone should be really angry at Moore.
Ironically, the article appears just after the Voice was picketed for allowing its Backpage advertising site to accept escort ads. Critics say that the ads have been linked to child sex-trafficking.
Hmmm, what’s that expression? Ah, yes—Don’t throw stones if you live in a glass house. (And if you do, beware of photographers when you’re nude!)
Good example of how wrong is right and right is wrong in this world. I consider what you are doing to be condoning internet bullying. He checks ages? What is he, the FBI?
Not buying the idea that self-submitted photos are nearly interchangeable with photos submitted by someone else out of revenge. I might send a nude picture of myself to my boyfriend or my Internet hookup and that’s the only audience I expect for that picture (naively, perhaps). It isn’t sex negative to want control over representations of my body (quite the opposite) and Moore facilitates robbing people of that control.
I’m not ashamed of my body. Quite the opposite after all those 6am spin classes, but that doesn’t mean I want it broadcast indiscriminately.
I see Linda’s point. These types of things have power because we let them have power. If we weren’t such a prudish culture, Hunter Moore’s website wouldn’t be so scandalous/”evil”/popular/etc.
Nice you’re trying to be optimistic, but these people didn’t send their photos to be published widely. You really can’t see why people would be upset?