Roskomnadzor has the power to block websites the Russian government doesn’t want its people to see, and the agency used that power Tuesday to block access to YouPorn and Pornhub-the world’s most popular porn sites-among others, the Independent reports. And things have become very odd.
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But the spirited way in which the Russian media regulator, Roskomnadzor has responded to criticism of its decision to ban PornHub and YouPorn, has demonstrated that it is no ordinary government agency.
“If we give you guys a Pornhub Premium account, will you un ban Pornhub in Russian Federation?” the site wrote.
“Sorry, we are not in the market and the demography is not a commodity”, Roskomnadzor answered.
Back in 2015, local authorities blocked the Russian page of Pornhub after a court in Krasnodar ruled the website violated child protection laws and distributed pornographic materials illegally.
But another social media user called Tolokinnikova patriotically tweeted: “By blocking PornHub and Youporn the government is supporting the domestic producer”.
While the prohibition has been roundly panned, some advocates believe the move is a positive action to defend family values and the safety of children from a wildly unregulated Internet porn landscape.
When frustrated free porn fans took to social media to attack the move, Roskomnadzor responded by retweeting one of its own tweets from past year: “Dear Lyolya, as an alternative you could try and meet someone in real life”. Thursday, the watchdog said that advice is “still relevant”.
Roskomnadzor’s spokesman Vadim Ampelonsky told RIA Novosti state news agency that lifting the ban was possible “only after a complete change in the sites’ repertoire”, a news agency reported.
Just like past year, Twitter users didn’t take the government decision standing down, criticizing the government’s stance on adult content.
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This post was syndicated from SIGNAL.
