Craigslist shuts down adult section

[PedroPistol]

as appeared on CBC

Craigslist has apparently closed the adult services section of its website in the United States, two weeks after 17 state attorneys general demanded it shut down the section.

Under the Services tab, the name of that section had been replaced Saturday by a black and white "censored" logo. At first glance the line looks like a link, but it doesn't function as one.

Craigslist did not immediately respond to an e-mail seeking comment.

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, one of the attorneys general who pressed for the change, said in a statement that he welcomed the change and was trying to verify Craigslist's policy going forward.

He said if it was doing the right thing voluntarily in response to the attorneys general, it could set a good example for others.

In an Aug. 24 letter, the state attorneys general said Craigslist should remove the section because it couldn't adequately block potentially illegal ads promoting prostitution and child trafficking.

Users of Craigslist in Canada could still find an "erotic" link Saturday under the Services heading, as well as an "adult" link under the Gigs heading. Both were absent on the U.S. site.



I wonder how long before it get's shut down here

 

[Pillowtalk]

as appeared on CBC

Craigslist has apparently closed the adult services section of its website in the United States, two weeks after 17 state attorneys general demanded it shut down the section.

Under the Services tab, the name of that section had been replaced Saturday by a black and white "censored" logo. At first glance the line looks like a link, but it doesn't function as one.

Craigslist did not immediately respond to an e-mail seeking comment.

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, one of the attorneys general who pressed for the change, said in a statement that he welcomed the change and was trying to verify Craigslist's policy going forward.

He said if it was doing the right thing voluntarily in response to the attorneys general, it could set a good example for others.

In an Aug. 24 letter, the state attorneys general said Craigslist should remove the section because it couldn't adequately block potentially illegal ads promoting prostitution and child trafficking.

Users of Craigslist in Canada could still find an "erotic" link Saturday under the Services heading, as well as an "adult" link under the Gigs heading. Both were absent on the U.S. site.



I wonder how long before it get's shut down here

It won't as long as prostitution is legal here. Why would you think that CL is going to eliminate it from other sites? They only do so under threats of legal action in the US where they are based, and the city sites affected are in the US. It was when they decided to start charging for adult service ads that they opened themselves up to more legal trouble, because prior to that had they stuck to their free advertising policies, the government could not stop them as they had no influence on what got posted or did not (unmonitored). Chargning and screening opened them up to scrutiny, and makes it easier for legal action against them.

As they point out in their blog, other venues get paid to post ads that are clearly for prostitution, yet no legal action is suggested for them. What will these agencies do now CL is not there? The main problems of underage providers and trafficking are still there, but it will no longer be as easy to find them, track them, and expose them. The ads will be filtered out into various area specific places or specialty sites like this one, and it will take a great deal more effort to be able to find and charge predators. The problems of forced workers and underage workers is unlikely to ever go away after all.

 

[manrock]

i find that backpages was better for the states anyway