Former AVN Online editor in chief Tom Hymes has been tapped to fill the newly created position of communications director for the Free Speech Coalition, effective June 1. The creation of the position is an effort to advance communication, information, and education activities on behalf of the adult industry, both inside the industry and in the mainstream.
The communications director will be responsible for all editorial, public relations, and media-related duties, including coordination of media interviews, events, and comments; oversight of FSC publications and websites; development and execution of advertising and marketing campaigns; creation and dissemination of research projects and white papers; expansion of partnerships with other national organizations, and formation and advancement of all FSC public education and media advocacy campaigns and materials.
Hymes, who will be working part time for the coalition during the remainder of May, said he is both pleased and daunted by the new set of challenges and opportunities before him. “It’s a big job and a challenging work load, to say the least, but I’m already chomping at the bit to get started,” he said, noting that he will use the first few weeks of part-time employment to become oriented with all segments of the adult-entertainment industry. “Obviously it’s gong to take me a while to get acclimated and shift gears, because it is something completely different than what I’ve done previously. I’m a natural-born advocate, though, so one of the most exciting things about this new position is that I won’t have to maintain the same kind of strict objectivity I had to employ as a journalist.
“I really look forward to helping the FSC articulate the needs and positions of the adult industry,” Hymes continued. “I think this is going to be a very exciting year. There’s going to be a lot of activity swirling around the FSC, and I’m just glad executive director Michelle Freridge and the board of directors trust me with this awesome responsibility.”
Freridge said the new position is part of a strategic plan developed by the FSC board in January 2005. “Among the goals we built into the plan were to develop and deliver communication and education functions that will inform the general public and the industry about issues that are important to the adult industry,” she said. “We want to initiate at least one [public relations] campaign about a major issue in the last quarter of 2005, and several in 2006.”
To that end, she said Hymes was a perfect fit for the assignment. “Tom is in many ways a godsend,” Freridge said. “In addition to his proven writing talents and organizational abilities, he has quietly cultivated an identity as a credible observer of the adult industry. While most of his work has been about the Internet side of the business, I’m convinced he will quickly and competently represent the needs of the entire industry, while bringing a fresh perspective that can only help the overall mission of the Free Speech Coalition.”
Among the first challenges Hymes will face is helping the coalition develop and disseminate its positions on issues forces not friendly to the adult industry consider attack points.
“The opposition has successfully created the definition of the argument in a lot of cases,” Freridge said. “Censorship is only one example. Child porn, adult entertainment, and obscenity are often all lumped together by [Morality in Media] and others like them. That’s intentional, and it makes legislators unable to resist their agenda because there’s a very real danger they’ll be characterized as a proponent of child porn.”
She continued, “Historically, we as an industry have responded either with denial or ‘you’re a fanatic.’ In reality, there’s an underlying issue that we need to address. We need to shape the debate—like casinos have shaped the debate about gambling. Instead of responding with denial or with simple insults, the trick is to respond effectively to the underlying issues.”
The FSC is the trade organization of the adult entertainment industry. Its mission is to safeguard the industry from oppressive governmental regulation and to promote good business practices within the industry. The organization may be reached by phone at (818) 348-9373. Its new communications director may be reached by email at [email protected].
