Samantha Cole

Samantha Cole

Sam Cole is writing from the far reaches of the internet, about sexuality, the adult industry, online culture, and AI. She's the author of How Sex Changed the Internet and the Internet Changed Sex.
229 posts
Scientific Journal Bans Images of ‘Lena,’ Researchers’ Favorite Centerfold
computing

Scientific Journal Bans Images of ‘Lena,’ Researchers’ Favorite Centerfold

"Starting 1 April, new manuscript submissions will no longer be allowed to include the Lena image,” a message from IEEE to engineers announced.
Kansas Is About to Pass the Most Extreme Age Verification Law Yet
age verification

Kansas Is About to Pass the Most Extreme Age Verification Law Yet

The bill would make sites with more than 25 percent adult content liable to fines, and lumps homosexuality into "sexual conduct."
404 Media Now Has a Full Text RSS Feed
Announcements

404 Media Now Has a Full Text RSS Feed

We paid for the development of full text RSS feeds for Ghost-based publishers. Now we can offer them to our paid subscribers, and other Ghost sites can use the service too.
Age Verification Laws Drag Us Back to the Dark Ages of the Internet
age verification

Age Verification Laws Drag Us Back to the Dark Ages of the Internet

Invasive and ineffective age verification laws that require users show government-issued ID, like a driver's license or passport, are passing like wildfire across the U.S.
Behind the Blog: Coffee in Keyboards and Venture Capitalists
Behind The Blog

Behind the Blog: Coffee in Keyboards and Venture Capitalists

This is Behind the Blog, where we share our behind-the-scenes thoughts about how a few of our top stories of the week came together. This week, we discuss coffee in keyboards, OSINT and cybersecurity tools, and what venture capitalists will be left with once they've bought up all the good websites.
Texas Sues xHamster and Chaturbate

Texas Sues xHamster and Chaturbate

Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing the porn sites after having also sued Pornhub, complaining that the sites are not complying with Texas' age verification law.
Green Bubble Vindication: DOJ Antitrust Lawsuit Says Apple Is Causing Android Users 'Social Stigma'
Apple

Green Bubble Vindication: DOJ Antitrust Lawsuit Says Apple Is Causing Android Users 'Social Stigma'

"This social pressure reinforces switching costs and drives users to continue buying iPhones—solidifying Apple’s smartphone dominance not because Apple has made its smartphone better, but because it has made communicating with other smartphones worse."
The FBI Charged a Man With Cyberstalking Nude Erotic Wrestlers
stalking

The FBI Charged a Man With Cyberstalking Nude Erotic Wrestlers

A man allegedly called one victim over 500 times from dozens of phone numbers, and sent messages saying "I’m going to keep harassing you until the day I die.”
Girls Do Porn Ringleader Pleads Not Guilty
girls do porn

Girls Do Porn Ringleader Pleads Not Guilty

Michael Pratt pleaded not guilty to 19 felony counts as his partner was sentenced to 14 years in prison.
Gumroad Celebrates Sales Spike While Adult Creators Panic
stripe

Gumroad Celebrates Sales Spike While Adult Creators Panic

Gumroad has banned anything that can be "understood as being primarily for sexual purposes," and while it bragged about a revenue spike, adult creators hustled to add flash sales to their shops.
Behind the Blog: TikTok Ban and Pornhub Blocks
Behind The Blog

Behind the Blog: TikTok Ban and Pornhub Blocks

This is Behind the Blog, where we share our behind-the-scenes thoughts about how a few of our top stories of the week came together. This week, we discuss iterative journalism, security through obscurity, Pornhub abandoning Texas and the TikTok ban.
Pornhub Pulls Out of Texas
pornhub

Pornhub Pulls Out of Texas

All of the sites in Aylo's network, including Pornhub, YouPorn, and Brazzers, are blocked in Texas, their homepages replaced with a message about the company's rejection of age verification laws.