American porn performers concerned about STDs
In an anonymous survey conducted by TheSword.com last week, almost 30% of gay adult performers revealed that they were either HIV positive or were unaware of their HIV status.
While many performers believed that condom-only studios were providing safety for industry workers in the area of HIV prevention, only half believed that they were receiving adequate prevention from other STDs like syphilis, HPV and chlamydia.
The study comes on the heels of legendary adult film director Chi Chi Larue’s new “safe sex is hot sex” campaign.
The campaign, which hopes to sway porn buying audiences away from the dangers associated with unsafe sexual practices, has again called into question the issues around barebacking videos.
While many high profile US porn companies such as Channel One Releasing, Falcon and Colt require all models to use condoms during sex, very few are asking for mandatory testing for the performers.
Hustler’s HIS video, who make condom-only films, are also requiring testing as an extra step in protection.
Many safe sex advocates are hoping for this practice to become more commonplace in the adult industry, but so far, companies have been unwilling to test all models because of the stigma associated with HIV.
Spenser Quest, who has detailed his trials of becoming positive in the gay adult industry on his website, commented to BGay News:
“It’s a chorus that we’ve heard before more than a few times, with newly HIV positive performers fearing they’ll be blacklisted if their status is known.
“For those who are new to the business, or for younger performers who are relatively new to gay sex, the silence around the topic can lead to fear, shame and a lack of safety with other performers in sexual situations off set.”
Some companies have bucked this trend and are testing models and pairing them with partners of equal status.
Mike Hancock of MikeHancock.com explained that he would still work with HIV positive models, but that they would have to be paired with other positive performers for everyone’s safety.
Hancock explained that he has received criticism from agents and other companies who feel like this practice violates the performers privacy, but Hancock insists that safety is his top priority.
The Sword has posted full results of the online survey, which also reveals that most performers never discuss their HIV status with screen partners before performing in a scene.
Most performers did, however, state that they would never participate in barebacking videos even if mandatory testing was put into place.
Dylan Vox © 2008 GayWired.com; All Rights Reserved.
