Jeff Livingston Interview’s AHF President Michael Weinstein
By: Jeff Livingston, Staff Writer
Jeff@JRLChartsOnline.com
LOS ANGELES, CA — The AIDS Healthcare Foundation has been getting a ton of attention from the Gay Adult Film Industry in 2013. In fact on Monday February 18, AHF stated in a press conference that their next move is to introduce a new ballot measure AB 332, that would ask voters to approve an all-new City of L.A. Public Health Department.
The Los Angeles County Public Health Department regulates and protects health and well-being in 85 of 88 cities, including the City of Los Angeles. Over the past few years, AIDS Healthcare Foundation has been lobbying Dr. Jonathan Fielding, Los Angeles County’s Public Health director, to shut down non-condom porn shoots in Los Angeles County.
The organization was also instrumental in getting Measure B passed last November. After the passage of Measure B, there have been several Adult Film labels that have been cited for non-condom use on production shoots.
AHF Healthcare Centers are known worldwide for providing specialized, comprehensive HIV care. Their staff have up-to-the-minute knowledge of HIV treatment, and their clinical research teams offer access to new medications and treatment practices. While they do accept most major insurance policies, they also offer care regardless if the client is able to pay.
But in the Gay Adult Film Industry, many were wondering why the Gay Adult Film Industry was not involved in the campaign last year over Measure B. Considering that 20 percent of Gay Adult Film labels are Bareback Only production companies, you would have thought that the AHF would have targeted the Gay porn industry as well.
Well Bareback gay porn labels should remember to be careful of what you wish for because now the time has come for the Gay Adult Film Industry to enter the spotlight over Measure B and condoms in Gay porn in general. I had the opportunity of interviewing Michael Weinstein over this matter and for the first time, he speaks directly to the Gay Adult Film Industry.
Jeff Livingston: Michael thank you for talking to JRL CHARTS. First off, you have become known throughout the Adult Film Industry as the main force behind the passage of Measure B in Los Angeles County which requires all male adult film performers to wear a condom on all video shoots. What motivated you to start a campaign as controversial as Measure B?
Michael Weinstein: The lives of Adult film performers are not disposable. The example of unprotected sex in porn sends a bad message that “the only kind of sex that is hot is unsafe sex”.
Jeff Livingston: Did you anticipate the backlash that followed the announcement of new legislation being proposed by the County of Los Angeles to force Adult Film studios to have all of their Male performers wear a condom in Adult Film productions?
Michael Weinstein: Yes I did Jeff…Adult film producers have made it clear that they will not put one penny at risk to protect performers. And, no industry wants to be regulated.
Jeff Livingston: To your knowledge, aside from the former Adult film actors that were publicized during the debate over Measure B, how many adult film performers be it straight or Gay, have contracted STDs from working in Adult XXX films over the past say….10 years?
Michael Weinstein: It is impossible to know the exact number but based on what has been published in public health journals, including undiagnosed disease in anatomical sites that are not tested it would be in excess of 10,000 cases.
Jeff Livingston: One thing that our readers wanted me to ask you was….why wasn’t the Gay Adult Film Industry ever mentioned during the Measure B campaign of 2012? In fact, one of the adult film performer’s who was paraded out in front of the cameras last summer, had contracted HIV from working on a Gay porn shoot. He even admitted to working in both Straight and Gay XXX films but was quickly taken off the scene once word that he had legal issues put him on the side line. Was it a strategic plan to put out performers who had contracted an STD or tested positive for HIV?
Michael Weinstein: Historically, the majority of Gay porn produced in Los Angeles is made with condoms which is why we didn’t focus on it for Measure B. Former Adult film performer Derrick Burts was a spokesperson for Measure B throughout the campaign. We felt that real life people who had suffered as a result of unsafe working conditions were the most relatable to the voters.
Jeff Livingston: Was it your intention to go after the straight market first and then target the Gay Adult Film marketplace? Why was the campaign mainly focused on the Straight side of the Adult Film Industry?
Michael Weinstein: We said during the campaign that we intended to address the growing trend toward bareback Gay porn after the campaign was over.
Jeff Livingston: You are now targeting 13 Gay Adult Film studios that produce Bareback genre content. How did you go about picking out which Gay porn bareback labels you were going to target?
Had you received complaints from performers about these studios? …How did you come to single out the studios in question?
Michael Weinstein: In my opinion, Treasure Island Media has been the most egregious and defiant. The rest of the Gay porn labels were just swept up in our run through adult video store inventory.
Jeff Livingston: Producers of the Bareback Gay porn genre state that you are doing this simply to generate publicity for AIDS Healthcare Foundation. How do you respond to that?
Michael Weinstein: Jeff…AHF serves 200,000 patients in 26 countries. We declared February 13th International Condom Day and had events in 65 countries around the world. We don’t need this issue to be noticed. This is what we believe – like it or not.
Jeff Livingston: This has been a major issue in the Gay Adult Film Industry for more than 10 years Michael….To the point where we had Gay porn producers attacking one another over this explosive issue. Where was everyone during this time period from 2004 – 2010 when this was a major issue for our part of the Adult Film Industry?
Michael Weinstein: AHF has championed safer sex from day one. I have personally had posters attacking me put up in West Hollywood calling me a “condom Nazi”. It may have taken us a long time to get around to bareback films specifically, but we’re on it now.
Jeff Livingston: Have you reached out to any of the Gay bareback porn labels in an attempt to move them away from this particular Genre? And if so, who have you contacted and what was their response?
Michael Weinstein: I have not reached out to any producers. They are responsible for their own actions. They know what the law says and forgive me for mentioning them again…but Gay porn label Treasure Island Media has been cited before for violating the law.
Jeff Livingston: Michael, since 1998….California has been known to be the headquarters of a multi-billion dollar Adult Film Industry. As you know, California requires that performers regularly undergo STD testing and test negative for HIV and other STDs within 30 days of a performance. So my question to you is…, If these tests are conducted on a regular basis and adult performers both Gay and Straight were not allowed to work if they came back positive for any STDs,, what was the need for Measure B? Are you saying that producers were not requiring their performers to be tested? or that the tests were flawed…what was the reason for the need for Measure B?
Michael Weinstein: Testing is not prevention. You can test positive today, get infected tomorrow and pass it to someone else the next day. Also, the Gay Adult Film Industry doesn’t test routinely.
Jeff Livingston: Can you tell me what services does the AIDS Healthcare Foundation offer to the Gay Adult Film Industry’s performers?
Michael Weinstein: AHF does not have specific services for the any part of the Adult Film Industry.
Jeff Livingston: Your current list of Gay bareback porn labels include Dark Alley Media, Spunk Video, SX Video, Hot Desert Knights and of course Treasure Island Media. In my Interview with the president of Treasure Island Media Paul Morris, he stated the following on this matter.
Morris stated….”We’re talking about the freedom of expression, of free speech, of the lives and creative livelihoods of everyone involved in any way with TIM. We’re also talking about the rights of HIV-positive men to express themselves sexually in an honest and straightforward way, and to have that documented and represented honestly and without bias or stigma” said Morris. What do you say to that Michael?
Michael Weinstein: Freedom of speech does not entitle an employer to harm a worker. Reasonable steps must be taken to protect stunt performers from injury. The same should apply to Adult XXX Entertainment. Treasure Island Media pays its employees to appear in their films. The gay porn performers do not have the option of using condoms. Performers have contracted STDs on their sets – that is wrong and illegal in California.
Jeff Livingston: Do you feel that HIV-Positive Gay porn performers who wish to engage in bareback sex on film should not have the right? Or do you see Gay Adult consumers being drawn to this type of Gay porn genre and will want to practice it themselves?
Michael Weinstein: Jeff …I worked in factory jobs in my youth. The protective gear I was required to wear slowed me down and reduced my income. The reason being — It was the law! I had no choice but to wear the gear for my job. If you want to make a porn film with someone and no money changes hands, you do have the right to do so. In my opinion as well as all of the Medical profession will tell you is that Bareback porn definitely glamorizes unsafe sex and entices young people into risky situations.
Jeff Livingston: You held a press conference on Monday February 18th along side California Assemblyman Isadore Hall of Compton who came to your offices to introduce his newly drafted bill AB 332. It is strikingly similar to Measure B, which makes condoms mandatory for porn shoots in Los Angeles County.
However AB 332 is a bill that would cover the entire state of California. Should such a bill pass, what is to stop Gay porn producers from going to other states to shoot their films? Or simply film their productions in the comforts of their homes? How can you realistically stop bareback gay porn from being produced?
Won’t Bill AB 332 being introduced in the California State Assembly, drive Gay porn producers and Straight porn producers for that matter to simply pack up their operation and move to a state that doesn’t have the same types of regulations on the Adult Film Industry?
Michael Weinstein: Porn is considered illegal prostitution in all states but California and New Hampshire. Porn producers will be taking serious risks filming elsewhere. However, California can only control what happens here. Filming bareback, regardless of where it is filmed, for commercial purposes is illegal in California.
Jeff Livingston: To date, there are roughly 20 Gay Bareback porn labels in the marketplace not of course talking about amateur content found on the web…..Have you considered approaching Gay porn labels that refuse to produce Gay Bareback genre content to see — if they would join you in your campaign to force the Gay Adult Film Industry to change its practice of producing Gay bareback porn to the marketplace?
Michael Weinstein: Jeff, we are not interested in getting in the middle of a civil war between porn producers of any genre.
Jeff Livingston: How do you combat retailers who have customers on a daily basis who want Gay bareback porn genre? Their customers simply do not want to buy condom films. What do you say to retail stores and their customers who want to buy Gay bareback porn?
Michael Weinstein: Wal-Mart might prefer to sell cheaper sneakers made by child labor but they are not allowed to do so. Many porn customers would like to see underage models – it is illegal.
Jeff Livingston: Michael tell our readers your game plan for targeting the Gay Adult Film Industry in 2013 to stop condom-less Gay porn from being produced in California? Are you looking to take this campaign nationwide? and if so, when and how?
Michael Weinstein: We have no formal game plan. We will continue to promote safer sex practices in any way that we can.
Jeff Livingston: What can you tell the Gay porn producers, directors and actors who are reading this interview that feel that you are infringing on their 1st Amendment rights and the right to produce legally made Gay porn?
Michael Weinstein: Jeff….You can’t yell fire in a crowded theater. We still have more than half a million Gay men who are infected with HIV in America and many more worldwide and, millions more who we need to protect from HIV and other STDs.
Jeff Livingston: How Do you change the minds of Gay Adult consumers who are steadfast on wanting bareback genre XXX films only?
Michael Weinstein: It is not a matter of changing their minds. It is a matter of protecting the performers.
Jeff Livingston: Are you planning on doing any seminars or group discussions on the danger of Bareback Gay Porn to Gay Adult consumers? and if so…how are you going to go about doing this?
Michael Weinstein: Currently we have no plans to do so.
Jeff Livingston: What is the misconception of Michael Weinstein that the Adult Film Industry has pushed into people’s opinion of you and the AIDS Healthcare Foundation?
Michael Weinstein: That we have a hidden motive for pushing safer sex in porn. AHF has been in the business of saving and improving lives for 26 years – it is actually that simple.
Jeff Livingston: Michael thank you for joining us on JRL CHARTS. We hope that you will come back to speak with us again.
Michael Weinstein: Thank you for the opportunity Jeff..
There you have it JRL CHARTS fans..Michael Weinstein of AIDS Healthcare Foundation in his own words. This is a sensitive subject for both the Gay and Straight Adult Entertainment Industry. Their are strong opinions on both sides and we continue to do our best to bring you both sides of the story. No matter if you are pro-bareback or anti-bareback, remember to get tested. You only have one life and you want to take care of that life to the best of your ability. Thank you for joining me on JRL CHARTS.
JRL CHARTS would like to know your opinion on the Michael Weinstein Interview. Your comments are important to us!
I am surprised they are not going after helix studios as well
What Weinstein didn’t say was almost as interesting as what he did. First, of course AHF doesn’t want to work with porn producers because then they might actually find out that the typical production isn’t quite as haphazard as he suggests. The fact that current protocols have shown that testing works doesn’t fit with Weinstein’s message – and certainly makes it harder for him to go around making the blatantly false accusations he does, at least not without losing what little credibility he has.
Speaking of credibility, let’s talk about Derrick Burt’s supposed seroconversion. The fact is, the movie set he allegedly converted on USED CONDOMS. Yes, that’s right, it was a safe sex shoot. If I were of Weinstein’s ilk, then, I’d go around saying that “condoms don’t work! See, here’s an example of someone who used a condom and still acquired HIV” but then again, I don’t have anything to gain from making such a ridiculous statement. Nevertheless, note how Weinstein fails to mention this fact. Gee, I wonder why?
Second, since by his own admission, Weinstein has not bothered to pick up the phone and actually speak with any of the producers he has targeted, how does he know what policies and procedures they have on set? Does he know whether or not condoms are or were available? Does he know what exposure protocols they have in place? Does Weinstein care? The answer here is a resounding NO. He doesn’t know, and he doesn’t want to, either.
Why is that? Well, it certainly puts AHF in the news every time they go around defaming producers and making inflammatory accusations. The press loves to stir controversy… I mean, here we are, reading JRL when, to be honest, I haven’t bothered for quite a while. (Of course, let’s not point out that JRL advertisers include bareback companies, including the ad for one of Helix’s bareback feature right there in the middle of this “story.”)
The irony of Weinstein’s efforts is that they will backfire in the worst possible way. He may very well succeed in outlawing bareback porn production in California. In the process, AHF will push the industry to other states (and if you think for one second that other states are going to fall for this gimmick of harassing tax-revenue-production in this era of tightening belts…) or worse, other countries. We’ve already seen it with the influx of material made in Europe and Latin America. And meanwhile, AHF downplays testing and knowing your status as the most effective method of combating HIV (and every other STD).
The one interesting point Weinstein stated was that he doesn’t want to get into the “civil war” between porn companies. I’m sure he doesn’t, because the side he would be forced to defend is the side that would lose. That, and he, AHF, and the rest of the condom-only proponents would have to confront their heads-in-the-sand approach that is mandatory condom use.
The bottom line is that Weinstein is stirring up the pot, translating the taboo factor into sales for bareback producers. But hey, it got his name in the news again and it got industry rags some page views.
Michael Weinstein gets paid $330,000 a year. That is money that comes from donations and government funding for HIV programs and AIDS research. As an HIV+ individual I am outraged this is the way this money is being wasted. The AHF makes a significant amount of donations from Lifestyles Condoms – condoms in porn would be one of the biggest FREE mandatory product placement campaigns in the world.
Weinstein clearly doesn’t know much about the porn industry. His actions demonstrate his ignorance.
1) He seems to think porn doesn’t get shot in the other 48 states because pornographers fear being prosecuted for prostitution.
Yet there are productions every day in various States all around the country. How many films are made in Hawaii because the director wants an all-expense paid vacation? Is anyone being prosecuted for this? How many films are year? 5,000 to 10,000. I haven’t heard much about it, and I’ve worked in this business for 15 years.
Even if someone is going to be prosecuted, who is it going to be? The pornographer who is ostensibly the “john” or the model who is in all likelihood a prostitute already with a Rent Boy page and all the rest. So much for model protection.
Lots of companies are setting up shop in Las Vegas, and now more will go there, or Phoenix, Portland, Seattle, Chicago, New York, etc, etc.
Some will just pick up their productions and go to another state. They can fly into a different city on a Friday, get a hotel room, shoot the local hookers or models they pick up on Rent Boy or Manhunt, and be back in San Francisco or LA by Monday to edit the video. Many already do this.
It’s a lot harder to regulate so-called “runaway productions.” The Feds under Bush 43 tried to eliminate them in terms of foreign countries with 2257, but in the end gave up. Freedom to travel is a right.
Weinstein got some traction in his effort to regulate the large straight companies precisely because they have big production facilities, offices, warehouses, contract girls, crews, and a whole infrastructure in Los Angeles County. Gay production companies are miniscule in comparison, with many having no production facilities of their own, and no contract models. A lot of them shoot in their homes, and Cal-Osha doesn’t regulate home offices.
2) At least half of the Treasure Island films he most recently cited were shot in Europe or New York. A number of the companies swept up in the latest complaint are merely distributors that sell European product like AVNS or Viper Entertainment. Others are like Dark Alley that are based in New York and don’t shoot in California, and a couple of the remaining may not even be in production any more. He probably will cause some problems for one or two of them, which I’m not going to name here.
3) Half of all gay bareback porn is shot in the Czech republic, and US law does not apply. In addition, during the last 3 months there have been new gay bareback movies released from the UK, France, Germany, South America and Russia. Treasure Island just started distributing a studio from Mexico with real zapotec looking guys, and they will be making bareback.
There’s even a new gay bareback company with black guys from Africa. Yes, the continent of fucking Africa.
4) Even if Weinstein is successful in going to every state in America and getting their local safety boards to look into this, it’s an effort that will take years if not decades. In that case, pornographers will simply create an extra layer of distribution just like they did back in the 1970’s. A distributor will simply say “I just acquired the rights to the movie. I have no idea what safety precautions the filmmaker used.” Filmmakers will go underground, meaning even less protection for models.
It appears that Weinstein in just in the pay of the condom companies, who want free product placement. He will NEVER shut down bareback porn, his efforts are futile. Just like Chi Chi LaRue before him will simply make bareback films more desirable and hotter.
A wise man once said to me “What does a gay man want most? Answer, whatever you tell him he can’t have.”
So to Mr. Weinstein, if you read this comment, I say “Good Luck with That.”
Well this is bullshit.
I’m Chris Hull. I own The French Connection. We distribute mostly safer sex films but some of my producers also shoot bareback films. I personally shoot safer sex films but have shot six bareback films in the past. It wasn’t my thing and I went back to only shooting safer sex.
In addition to the 330k Mr. W rakes in every year, because AIDS is good business, I was just wondering if AHF still employs that hot blonde hunky guy that also doubled as Mr. W’s “personal trainer”? And just from hearing their conversations at the gym (loud conversations because he wanted to show off his arm candy) apparently W and his boyfriend have an “open relationship” and from the details I heard it seemed a safe assumption they bareback in their personal lives. And this was all before I knew who W was or what he did for a living. The kid was kind of a blonde Adonis and when I would walk by the AHF pharmacy on Sunset on my way to the Arclight gym I would see him there. I talked to people who worked there and they all said basically the same thing: Sweet kid, paid a lot of money to do nothing because W wants to suck his dick. That may or may not be true but the question is was W using AHF funds to create a job for his personal trainer? And not to be too bitchy but did AHF or W pay for his new face? One of the ways to deflect attention from your own bad behavior is to point the bony finger at another. So perhaps Mr. W should work on ending the unsafe sex he and his friends have before going after someone else’s?
When I shoot I prefer to shoot with condoms. The ONLY time I ever did a line of bareback films was when I was shooting in Prague and the models simply wouldn’t wear condoms. For the most part I prefer filming with condoms because of the friends I lost. BUT I understand the point of what TIM is saying and support that position also.
Simply putting condoms in porn will not educate one person about HIV or keep them negative. Most gay porn that uses condoms film with the “magically appearing condom” technique anyway which encourages more unsafe sex than bareback films imho.
Bareback sex is a form of free speech. The desire some guys have to “take loads” is simply wired into them and it is who they are sexually. AIDS or no AIDS these guys in order to have fulfilling sex lives have to do it. There are millions of years of evolution creating genes that make people want to mate with their partner and take their seed. In some gay men this gene is expressed in spite of its not being needed. As a pornographer we are not just filmmakers. We are documentarians capturing a specific moment in time. What, and who, is considered sexy today would not necessarily be so ten years ago or ten years from now. Bareback is the way sex was “meant” to be. But the type of BB TIM fetishes is a but moment. That moment may fade away,may evolve into something more or become the “norm” and no longer be a fetish. Things go through cycles. You can’t fight human nature and desires. You can create systems where people can recognize their desires and find ways to express them safely (like be a cum pig with your husband but use rubbers with strangers or be monogamous).
There is a much bigger and deeper conversation we could have about this issue but AHF doesn’t care to do that. AHF just wants to get their name in the paper and the name of it’s CEO. I would look at his motivations for doing this because I’m not sure how this ties into the mission of AHF? Criminalizing consensual behavior isn’t the best way to change behavior. Reaching out to companies and asking for warning labels, PSA’s before the film begins, etc. Those are things that could save a life. Meth and other drugs still lead to more MSM’s getting HIV than bareback porn does.
This is bullshit.
Weinstein makes it out like bareback studios force models into working for them and that the models are all idiots not aware of the risks involved in doing bareback. That is simply not true and is unfair to the models who are aware and have willingly accepted the risks. Last time I checked this was a free country. If Weinstein has his way it will be his way or nothing. Who made him god?