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From “what’s the difference between ogling a model and a porn star” to “are free porn sites bad,” if you’ve got questions about adult content, this guide is for you.

Is Following an Instagram Model the Same as Subscribing to OnlyFans or Watching Tube Sites

What is porn, exactly? 

“Porn is any visual content that’s created with the explicit intention of exciting, enticing, and pleasuring viewers, with the consent of all performers or creators involved,” says Rev. Sunthorpe, a sex educator, performer, and founder of Reiki Bondage.

OK, so what isn’t porn? 

You should pay particular attention to the terms "explicit intention" and "consent" in the definition above.

The former expression distinguishes between something like a Victoria's Secret catalog or an Instagram model's post, which usually employs suggestive material to sell something, and porn, which is intended to stimulate sexually.

Furthermore, the latter (referred to as "consensual") distinguishes porn from juvenile sexual content, video abuse, and "revenge porn."

Making informed decisions

To be clear, there is nothing intrinsically wrong with porn or other adult entertainment. (For the record, masturbating and having sex before marriage aren't either.)

Pornographic images, texts, and audio are not inherently bad. Workers in sex are not victims. An ethically created scene or scenario won't put you on Santa's naughty list if it turns you on.

“Ethical,” however, is the key word here.

Whatever its form, adult entertainment is defined as material or interactions produced by consenting adults with the intention of arousing or indulging other consenting adults' sexual desires.

It is not a reference to the freely chosen material or interactions that are frequently labeled as "porn" and blamed for "destroying our culture" or "decaying our moral character."

For instance, so-called "revenge porn" isn't porn at all; rather, it's a compilation of sexual media made by one individual for their own amusement and not for the amusement of others who may happen to come into contact with it.

The secret to building a positive connection with adult entertainment is understanding the difference between images, films, and other materials that were not intended for public (adult) consumption and stuff that was voluntarily generated for that purpose.

Adult entertainment, for instance, is exactly that—entertainment. It is not intended to replace or function as educational materials on sex education.

Instagram content vs. porn

There are undoubtedly some gorgeous people in skimpy clothing on Instagram—photos that *haven't* been taken down because of censorship. However, this material isn't inherently explicit.

Megan, the founder and performer of That Fat Babe, is a branding expert and fat activist. She thinks that "showing your body doesn't automatically make something porn."

According to Megan, "it's not porn unless people are posting their bodies on Instagram with the intention of it being consumed like porn."

To set her Instagram post apart from the porn she creates, she even created an OnlyFans account under the moniker That Fat Babe. The website OnlyFans offers content subscriptions.

“I didn’t create my Instagram account with the intent of people engaging with my content in a sexual way,” Megan says.

When she started getting requests for more sexual content in her DMs, she started an OnlyFans. Now, when someone messages her on Instagram asking for sexually explicit content, she directs them to her OnlyFans.

“This allows me to decide what people get access to, while also allowing me to profit off of it,” Megan says.

Here’s where it gets a little tricky: Often, performers will use Instagram to help market their pornographic content.

For example, Megan runs an Instagram where she promotes her OnlyFans account.

Rev. Sunthorpe uses her personal Instagram to inform her followers of upcoming events or when her OnlyFans is on sale.

But these posts aren’t porn. They’re designed to lead you to a place where you can ethically consume porn.

Porn vs. ethical porn
“Ethical porn” has become a bit of a buzzword recently, so you might be wondering what it means.

“The phrase ‘ethical porn’ is heavily tied to the circumstances and environment that the porn was produced,” Rev. Sunthorpe says.

Ethical porn, according to her, is porn:

that’s made with the talent’s pleasure, boundaries, and well-being in mind
that doesn’t rely on racist tropes
that’s made on a set free of harassment, sexism, racism, homophobia, and abuse
where performers are being paid their worth
Generally, ethical porn is thought to depict more “realistic” sex compared to other videos on the internet.

Other phrases that have popped up with a similar intent include:

feminist porn
fair-trade porn
constitutional porn
responsible porn
independent porn
All porn should be ethical porn
“At this day and age, porn and ethical porn should be synonymous — all porn should be ethical porn,” says booty sexpert, performer, and BDSM bottom Daya Dare.

Why? Well, because if it isn’t ethical, it shouldn’t be considered porn, Dare says.

One way to understand this is to think about the difference between sex and assault.

Just as sexual behavior that isn’t consensual isn’t considered sex (it’s considered assault), porn that isn’t ethical shouldn’t be considered porn (it should be considered abuse).

Are tube sites ethical?
Ehhh.

“It’s hard to tell,” Rev. Sunthorpe says.

A big determinant of ethical porn is how the performers’ contracts are being negotiated and what they’re being paid. On tube sites — aka porn sites modeled after YouTube — it’s nearly impossible to find out this information.

As a general rule, though, Dare says, “If the consumer isn’t paying for their porn, they’re not consuming their porn ethically.”

And most of these tube sites allow porn consumers to watch for free.

OnlyFans is the most popular distribution channel for ethical porn

“Unfortunately, it doesn’t have a good search engine,” Dare says.

If, for example, you’re looking for a performer with red hair and type “red hair” into the search bar, the only performers who will come up are those who have the phrase “red hair” in their account handle.

To find OnlyFans accounts to follow, Rev. Sunthorpe recommends following the performers you already know you like on Instagram.

“Many performers do a wonderful job at co-promoting each other on social media,” Rev. Sunthorpe says.

Reddit and Twitter are other good avenues, according to Dare.

“Reddit is an especially good place to find performers that are catering to your specific kink,” Dare says.

But OnlyFans isn’t the only distribution channel

Other paid channels include:

ManyVids
Clips4Sale
AdultMemberSites

“Many performers are also creating their own websites that you go to directly to consume their content,” Dare adds.

So, if you find a performer you like, don’t hesitate to Google their name or tap the link in their Instagram bio to try to find their personal website.

What if I don’t want to follow just *one* performer? 

Luckily, there are many paid porn platforms that are working to revolutionize the porn industry with ethical aggregated content.

If you’re consuming porn on a platform where tipping is an option, Megan recommends tipping well and often.

“One way to think about it is that your subscription is your price in the door at a club, while your tips are what you would pay for a drink or lap dance or plate of nachos,” Megan explains.

How much you tip will vary based on things like what you want to see, hear, or say, or whether you want to be seen. But as a general rule, she recommends tipping at least $5 for every other response.

“It’s imperative that you show the performer that you value their time and creativity,” Megan says.

What makes porn different than other kinds of sex work? 
Really, what this question is asking is, What’s the difference between porn and prostitution?

At the time of publication, prostitution — defined as the act of engaging in IRL sexual intercourse for money — is illegal everywhere in the United States except for a few counties in Nevada.

Porn, however, isn’t illegal. It’s considered artistic expression, so it’s allowed under the First Amendment, so long as obscenity isn’t involved.

In other words, according to the law, prostitutes are paid for sex (illegal) while porn performers are paid to act (legal).

Do you think this distinction is made arbitrarily? Honestly, it ought to.

Because of this, the majority of porn actors think that in addition to being a moral porn user, one should actively seek to decriminalize sex employment.

It could take more effort and money to ethically consume porn than it does to just type terms like "red head" or "big booty" into a search engine.

However, doing so is not only the morally correct thing to do for all parties involved, but it will also eventually make watching for you more enjoyable.