AVN President Paul Fishbein was a guest on CNN’s “Glenn Beck” program on Tuesday. Fishbein’s appearance comes as part of the conservative host’s four-part series about the adult entertainment industry in America.
Beck opened the segment by saying that he is a “religious family values conservative,” but that it takes “every ounce of will power” he has “as a guy, not to get into the constant stream of porn” that he “comes into contact with every single day.”
“It’s a struggle for me…porn is a very seductive, powerful, and as you will see, a very lucrative business,” Beck continued.
The show then cut to an opening montage that illustrated the diversification of the adult entertainment industry, with comments from Bill Asher, co-chairman of Vivid Entertainment and Layne Thrasher, Danni.com’s vice president of operations.
The program pointed out Adult’s connection to technological advances, as well as throwing out some impressive figures. “The adult entertainment industry generates about 57 billion dollars, worldwide,” Beck continued. “Porn revenue is larger than all the combined revenues of professional football, baseball and basketball combined.”
Beck’s subsequent rant against the adult industry seemed to revolve around its growing accessibility. “Even traditional companies like hotel chains and cable operators are making huge dollars off of pay-per-view porn. One recent figure suggests that half of all hotel guests buy porn in their rooms.”
Fishbein, the evening’s featured guest, pointed out that “these movies [in hotels] are consumed by adults, and not by children…so it’s adults making personal choices.”
The usually aggressive Beck seemed slightly docile while interviewing Fishbein. "[The industry] had gone from a sticky-floored theatre to people's homes and now people don’t have a problem with porn. When did that happen?” asked Beck.
“It’s technology. It’s the invention of the VCR, and in the late 1970’s people getting VCR’s for their homes for the first time…and people getting an Adult movie and not having to go out in public, and having to have their neighbors see them,” Fishbein answered.
“Sex is a very private thing…so now you can watch it in the privacy of your own home.”
According to the CNN website, the special series, which started Monday, “profiles how a man and his wife dealt with his porn addiction. On Tuesday, we examine the proliferation of the multibillion pornography industry. In Part Three, we look at what new technology is changing pornography. And Thursday, we'll profile a woman who left the business to counsel others.”
Beck's career started at age 13 when he won a local radio contest. After high school graduation, Beck pursued a career as a Top 40 disc jockey, landing a job in Texas as a morning host. According to CNN’s site, after a bout with alcoholism and drug addiction, Beck became a Mormon and embarked on a new career in talk radio.
Since its start in May of 2006, the CNN site reports that Beck’s program offers an “unconventional look at the news of the day featuring Beck's unique and often amusing perspective.”
The rest of series airs daily on CNN at 7 p.m. E.S.T. and then replays at 9 p.m. and midnight on Headline News.
