I was listening to this station in the car this morning; I normally prefer Today FM but chop and change if there's a song I don't like. Switched to 2FM, where a discussion had just started about porn between the presenter and some sort of expert - I didn't catch what her actual qualifications or role was.
Anyway, the discussion started with lots of positive affirmation about the benefits of porn, particularly for LBGTQ people. No surprise the focus was on the T though; how powerful and affirming it is to see bodies like your own in porn, especially nowadays when there are so many terrible, awful terfs around who want to deny Trans people's existence (that's what they actually said).
The discussion then moved on a bit, to what you should do if you were uncomfortable with the type of porn your partner was viewing. What if it was something that made you uneasy, like violent porn? Well, apparently it's fine not to like everything in porn, you don't have to, but it if you're having a strong reaction to something like that that your partner may be viewing, maybe you should explore why you are so resistant to it.
And how do you have these conversations with your partner about concerns about the kind of porn they're using, what if you've discovered they're watching something that horrifies you? Well, maybe broach it when you are out for a walk, so it's no as awkward, but it's important not to be confrontational or accusatory about it. Why not start with a more neutral "Can we talk about...?". I turned off at that point.
I'm well used to the incessant wokery of the Irish media, but this discussion just filled me with so much sadness. It was on at about 9.45am this morning. The casual and offhand slurring of GC women as "terrible, awful terfs". The subtle, insidious urging of women to drop their boundaries. The thorough normalising of porn, even porn described as violent, or horrifying to the partner.
I just despair.