How Sex Changed the Internet and the Internet Changed Sex

September 19, 2022
Journalist Cole debuts with an immersive history of the relationship between computer technology and sexuality. She notes that early adopters developed intimate connections and discussed sexuality on bulletin board systems and Usenet groups in the 1980s, explains how the Telecommunications Decency Act of 1996 helped the internet flourish as a space for sexualized free expression, and claims that the 1990s advent of webcams shifted power from male-dominated porn studios to individual content producers, many of them women. In the past 10 to 15 years, however, increasing digital prudery has threatened to marginalize sexual expression, activism, and education, according to Cole. She contends that anti–sex trafficking legislation has channeled sex workers back into environments where they have less control, and that Facebook and Instagram’s complicated censorship rules push queer, nonwhite, and nonnormative sexual content to the margins. Meanwhile, the algorithmization of the internet means that free porn sites such as Pornhub make money by harvesting data from users (who are often watching reposted or otherwise stolen content), thereby tilting the axis of control back toward large companies. Cole’s admiration for adult industry entrepreneurs, performers, and activists shines through, though she has a tendency to overstate her claim that “the Internet is built on sex.” Still, this thought-provoking study casts the digital age in a new light. Illus. Agent: Eric Lupfer, Fletcher & Co.

October 1, 2022

Sex on the internet existed long before Pam and Tommy's sex tape, online dating, and OnlyFans. Cole's (sr. staff writer, Motherboard) debut book offers a historical perspective of how technology, from the 1960s through today, has affected views and attitudes about sex. The author covers everything from the history of sex on the internet, to early Camgirls, sex toys, and Deepfakes. Highlights include "A Brief History of Online Dating" chapter and explanations about how the government continues to navigate the ever-evolving internet. This book is informative, readable, and entertaining. While Cole makes this book accessible for readers interested in surface level topics such as cyber-sex, the real discussion is about how sex has greatly shaped the development of the internet and its ramifications. By the end, readers will be left wondering if sex, technology, society, and the government can ever peacefully coexist. VERDICT This book is perfect for readers interested in how society reached the point it is at today with the internet and sex and the issues that have emerged.--Anna Kallemeyn

Copyright 2022 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 1, 2022
A colorful, graphics-heavy exploration of how "the internet was built on sex, and sex has remained its through line no matter how hard some people try to deny it." Before smartphones and social media platforms, the earliest days of the internet began with connections and communication, and a key part of that was sex. "A demand for sex built the shopping cart, browser cookie, ad revenue models, payment processors, and the dynamic web page," writes Cole, a senior staff writer for Motherboard, VICE's science and technology outlet. "The desire to explore and share our sexuality constructed the internet, piece by piece, as we know it today." The author takes us back to the earliest days of the internet, when communication online was difficult and slow. She then discusses how the development of graphics on computers can be traced back to a test image of the face of a Swedish Playboy model in 1972. She moves on to the explosion of user-generated content, from early Bulletin Board Systems; to "lifecasters" like Jennifer Ringley, who launched her 24/7 webcam site, JenniCam, in 1996; to current tech developments, legislation, societal changes, and the figures, legitimate and exploitative alike, who have profited from creators and users--including those who use deepfake technology as well as Pornhub and a wide variety of online hosts for porn of every variety. "This is a history of control: how we had it, grappled for it, lost it, and how we can learn from the past to get it back," writes the author. "And it's a history that's still being written as I type this. Power to the workers, the players, the posters, the survivors, my fellow members with me in the 'now online.' " Cole presents an easy-to-read package complete with relevant sidebars (many of which define key terms), screenshots, photos, and other graphic elements. An engaging look at a topic that many choose to ignore or are too embarrassed to discuss.

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October 15, 2022
Cole, senior staff writer for Vice's science and tech outlet, Motherboard, brings readers an extremely comprehensive look at sex's influence on the internet and, in turn (as the title suggests), how the internet has influenced sex. The text opens in the 1960s, before PCs were in homes all over America. Sex, explorations of sexuality, explicit art, sex work, sex toys, and of course pornography are looked at through a historic lens. The unique, unforeseen ways these have influenced needed enhancements in internet technology and security and much-needed legislation for everything from online privacy to free speech are explored. The relationship between the internet and sex isn't one-sided, though. How sex, sex toys, art, and more have been affected and changed by new technologies, online spaces from the internet's first forums to video games, and VR as well as other cutting-edge technology are also well outlined. Cole distills various technical terminology, online lingo, and other names and terms into easy-to-understand language. Perfect for readers of history, particularly tech history, and sex and gender studies.

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