Pornography is pervasive in our society. All a 
teenager has to do to see some naked bodies is browse 
the Internet. Many e-mail boxes are bombarded with 
smut-filled messages. There are also many pornographic 
magazines, videos, movies rated “R” and “X”, jokes, 
phone sex and other materials that are sexually 
explicit and intended to arouse sexual excitement. 
Chances are, while watching television you have come 
across channels offering some form of pornography. 
Even newspapers and magazines have ads offering phone 
sex or escort services. And, according to statistics, 
there is likely to be someone in your home viewing, 
possibly even addicted to, pornography.
Recently U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales 
created an anti-obscenity squad to combat pornography. 
There are many opponents to porn, but is pornography 
bad? Does it have any benefits?
Marne Martin, a certified sex therapist, is not in 
favor of making pornography illegal because she does 
not favor censorship. She also says that pornography 
has some benefits. “I think pornography definitely can 
be used to enhance and increase sexual desire and 
enhance sexual creativity,” Martin said. 
Other benefits of pornography are that teenagers might 
be abstinent longer if they have access to 
pornography, decreasing the risk of sexually 
transmitted diseases including AIDS.
Some critics of porn think it might encourage sexual 
assault. But a commission created by president Lyndon 
B. Johnson in 1970 found no relationship between 
pornography and rape or sexual assault for adults or 
juveniles.
Martin said that pornography is not bad, but it 
depends on the person watching it. Different teenagers 
mature at different ages, so the effects of 
pornography depend on the maturity level of the person 
watching it. “When people talk about pornography they 
usually generalize and paint with a broad brush,” 
Martin said. “We need to talk about what it means and 
how that person takes pornography in and processes it. 
Do they process it as: this is what sexuality is?”
The downsides of porn are that people might not have 
realistic views of sexuality. 
“Pornography gives a person unrealistic perspectives 
of bodies and sexual performance,” Martin said. “If 
people don’t realize pornography is just acting, then 
people hold unrealistic standards of sexuality”. 
My advice is that if teens watch porn, they should be 
aware of the effects it may have. I think teens will 
always be curious about porn, and there isn’t a right 
age to view it, but each individual matures at a 
different pace. You will know when you want to be 
exposed to porn, but as a life experience, don’t leave 
the magazines lying around.