It appears family advocates may have to speak up if they want to permanently keep pornography off the hottest mobile communications device on the market – Apple's iPhone.
For the past few days, pornographic images have been available through one of the phone's many applications – colloquially known as "apps." The app in question is called "Hottest Girls," costs $2 and is billed as including "2200+ images of topless, sexy babes and nude models."
Family advocates have been expressing their displeasure to Apple, and it appeared today their outrage may have had an impact, when the app was unavailable for several hours. But Apple wasn't saying why it was pulled, and late in the day the app's developer said he – not Apple – made it temporarily unavailable because high demand was overloading his computer servers.
Daniel Weiss, senior analyst for media and sexuality at Focus on the Family, said he thinks Apple is gauging public response to the app.
"This is absolutely a 'toe in the water,' 'he said. "They are trying to determine how viable selling porn is on the iPhone."
Pro-family groups were particularly dismayed at this move since Apple had previously prohibited pornographic content from its apps store.
Pressure from the public can have a huge impact on a business, according to Pat Trueman, special counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund. That's why families must continue to let Apple know how they feel about porn being available on the iPhone.
"Public outrage just caused Calvin Klein to take down its very explicit billboard in New York City, which was pornography," he said.
Weiss said he finds it troubling that Apple tried to dodge accountability when introducing nudity on the iPhone during its recent software update by playing the "parental-control option card."
"In this case they're saying, 'Full responsibility belongs to the parents,' "he noted, "as if this company has no responsibility for the society they are a part of."
Truman also questioned the validity of Apple's claim about parental controls.
"I wouldn't be surprised to see some state prosecutor go after Apple for providing pornography to children," he said, "because you can get it as a child unless mom and dad are watching over you."
The important thing for people to understand, Weiss said, is that the harm to women caused by pornography cannot be ignored.
"These are not mere pictures. They've turned women into a commodity that they're now selling," he explained. "And when we turn people into commodities, that's part of the whole sex-trafficking industry — where people are bought and sold for sexual purposes."
TAKE ACTION
To let Apple know how you feel about its selling of pornography on the iPhone, visit the company Web site and send an e-mail using the form found under "Website comments."
(NOTE: Referral to Web sites not produced by Focus on the Family Action is for informational purposes only and does not necessarily constitute an endorsement of the sites' content.)
