It’s hard to say. I don’t think that porn in and of itself is the issue – I think ethical porn kind of proves that point.
For me, the issue is that porn is often violent, doesn’t show safe sex, doesn’t show consent, and is heavily geared towards males. When websites like PornHub are people’s main sources of porn, that’s the issue, because it normalises sexual behaviours that can be harmful.
It’s especially problematic if porn (the ‘mainstream kind’) is a kid’s first introduction to sex and sexuality.
Plus, there is the issue of becoming ‘desensitised’ or addicted to porn, and needing more intense or aggressive content to become aroused. I wonder if this issue would still exist among purely ethical porn viewers?
It’a scary to wonder if the porn we can access for free online is legally and ethically obtained. I’m so glad that ethical porn exists as an alternative, but I’m not sure how it can ‘compete’ given it’s often not free.
Something I’ve been seeing lately is a huge influx of sex workers creating OnlyFans accounts. I think that’s more ethical (emphasis on I think, I don’t know too much about it), as creators can choose what and when to post, and how much or little to show.