Ahhhh, your post makes more sense now. You just said surfers earlier, as opposed to non-paying surfers. Big difference there, buddy.
But again, I think all adult webmasters need to re-examine what they think the "big picture" really is.
Why do people make movies? Why do we want to get into movies and entertainment in the first place? Obviously, there is a communal energy and a mass consciousness that comes with the territory. People usually watch movies because they are looking for representations of their life on the big screen. (I know many people often say they go to the movies b/cuz they want to lose themselves, but I think that is total B.S. People go to the movies more often than not b/cuz they want to find themselves.) We want to relate to the people and stories on the screen, to think, "What if that happened to me?" Likewise, those who get into movies and write scripts and act and direct are more likely to want to share their emotions and experiences with an audience. In a way, it's a form of therapy. Women like chick flicks 'cuz they can cry in them. Straight guys like action flicks 'cuz they can relate to wanting to be the hero. Etc. etc.
The same applies to pornography. Or at least it should. Yet many porn directors, porn stars, and webmasters have cheapened what porn was meant to be originally, and turned it into nothing more than a culture of sex for sale.
At the risk of sounding like a broken record, adult entertainment should, first and foremost, be something that we use to promote a healthy social consciousness surrounding human sexuality. By representing the various forms of sexual desire onscreen, we are giving people a place where they can feel validated for the things that they find to be hot. Gay people, especially, need this more of sexual validation more than anyone, as our sexuality is often marginalized and maligned as dirty and shameful.
Meanwhile, since we do not have very many openly gay Hollywood performers, porn stars have become our community's "icons." Considering that a large portion of them are gay-for-pay or are carbon-copy gym bunnies who pump themselves up on steroids and put horrible things in their bodies when they're not onscreen, that's a rather sad fact.
We have the opportunity to shape and refine the gay community's ideas about sexuality. We have the power to create a brand new sexual revolution that does MORE than just show guys fucking. We have the opportunity to tell STORIES and share EXPERIENCES that will help gay men feel less marginalized and shameful.
I truly think THAT is the bigger picture here. Yes, it's WONDERFUL that we can make a living off of doing this, but as someone who sought out this business to be a part of, the motivation behind it was never the pay. It has never been, nor will it ever be.
What's my point then? That the surfers--the paying ones--are EVERYTHING to us. The content is golden. We may all look at our affiliate programs and our retention and our sales and think, "This is wonderful," but I seriously look forward to the day when people start saying things like, "The emails I get from guys who say I helped them come out and feel proud of who they are--those are the things that make me proud of what I do. The money is just a nice bonus."
Again, just my starry-eyed, idealistic $.02.
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