'Restricting extreme porn could aid sex education'

Restricting the availability of extreme pornography could improve sex education and understanding around consent, an academic has said.

Durham University law professor Clare McGlynn has warned widely available extreme content normalises sexual violence, with some young people first introduced to sex through it.

"At the moment there's an awful lot of non-consensual material on these websites as well, that blurs the boundaries between consent and non-consent, which is confusing for young people," she said.

McGlynn welcomed new laws which are set to criminalise having or publishing pornography which shows incest, or adults pretending to be children.

Tech executives could also be fined or imprisoned if their platforms fail to remove non-consensual images under measures introduced in April.

"We're at a good point," McGlynn said. "We've got some good laws now that are going to restrict this material.

"The key point being, if these laws were enforced, it could make a transformative difference to the type of material that's easily and freely accessible online."

McGlynn was involved in drafting the law against creating non-consensual intimate images, which came into force in February.

In her research, she has found one in eight titles on mainstream pornography sites describe sexual violence.

She has also called for a national education campaign around strangulation.

"Boys and men are being exposed to sexual norms rooted in misogyny, racism and coercion, with aggression against, and humiliation of, women and girls presented as normal and even desirable," the academic said.

"The extreme content on these easily accessible mainstream platforms eroticises inequality and normalises violence against women and girls.

"This affects us all, even if you're not watching it, as these messages seep into all aspects of our lives."

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