Popular online adult movie sites in Texas have posted “Texas Health and Human Services” disclaimers warning visitors about the unproven health risks of viewing pornography. reports 404 Media. The move comes after a U.S. appeals court temporarily canceled an order blocking a Texas law that required porn sites to verify users’ ages and display government health warnings.
Although they do not require age verification, all Vixen Media Group sites, including Deeper, blackenedand Bitch- now displays objectively debatable disclaimers warning that pornography is “potentially biologically addictive” and “has been shown to harm human brain development.” Warnings appear for users within the state of Texas.
These pop-ups also claim that pornography “increases the demand for prostitution, child exploitation, and child pornography” and that exposure is associated with “emotional and mental illnesses.”
It’s unclear how long the disclaimers have been in line, but they appear to be a reaction to Texas’ HB 1181, which was initially scheduled to go into effect on September 1 but has been heavily challenged in court. HB 1181 requires adult sites to display liability disclaimers and verify users’ ages with a government-issued ID. However, a district judge agreed to block it in late August after a group of activists and adult entertainment companies, including Pornhub, Brazzers and the Free Speech Coalition, filed a complaint arguing it was unconstitutional.
The lawsuit criticized the health warning required by law, calling it a “mix of falsehoods, discredited pseudoscience, and unfounded accusations” and “a classic example of the state demanding an orthodox view on a controversial issue.” District Judge David Alan Ezra agreed, rejecting both the age verification rule and the health liability waiver. “Although these warnings are labeled ‘Texas Health and Human Services,’ it appears that the Texas Health and Human Services Commission has not made these findings or announcements,” Ezra wrote in Your decision on August 31.
However, on September 19, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals stayed the injunction, blocking the law while arguments were scheduled. The court did not offer an explanation, only adding that the appeal would be “expedited” to the next panel of oral arguments.
Several states have pushed rules restricting the operation of pornographic sites, which determines how these sites operate in some parts of the United States. After Arkansas passed an age verification law in August for adult sites, Pornhub operator MindGeek responded by blocking all Arkansas users. MindGeek imposed the same bans in other states that have implemented similar laws, including Mississippi, Utah, and Virginia.
