Discussions of the week 10/22- 10/26/12

     This past week our class gave individual and group midterm presentations.  These presentations covered various topics researching the pornographic industry.  Our classmates or groups could choose to research any given topic pertaining to the content, production, or audience reception of the pornographic industry.  So far, we have seen two individual presentations, and two group projects.  The topics of the presentations ranged from violence in the porn industry; the promotion/ profits hotels gain from offering porn in their rooms; and Production, Marketing, & Distribution of Time Warner.  The last topic is what my group decided to do.  There was another group that actually did the same topic as us, but they approached their research in a different way.  They looked into laws against porn, declining revenues, and profits.  My group chose to angle our research to examine the secretive hidden cross-marketing, the hidden profits, and the social economic impact of the porn industry getting closer to reaching mainstream media.  Although our two groups had the same exact topic for our midterm, each of us found different ways to angle or studies and the information we found.  This project was very insightful, because it was never an industry I questioned, nor looked into.  I never questioned profits made by porn, nor did I ask who receives the benefits.  I never knew until now, that so many large media industries and companies generate millions or billions of dollars in revenue, while staying secretive about it.  These companies gain a lot of money, while they do not attach their company image to the porn industry, because pornography is still very controversial among many.  Something my group found had mentioned that porn is only for certain people, and those certain people who like it, will know where to look for it.  With that being said, much marketing isn't necessary.  It is obvious that media companies know that sex sells, and they capitalize on this fact by consistently pressing people's boundaries of their comfort levels.