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Corporations Respond to CWA 2/25/2003 Corporate responses to CWA have been underwhelming. ... On October 30, 2002, CWA released a report, "The Porn Ring Around Corporate White Collars: Getting Filthy Rich." The report identifies major mainstream corporations that are trafficking in and financing purchases of hard-core pornography. The corporations named include General Motors' DirecTV, AOL Time-Warner, AT&T, Echo Star Communications, Comcast, Marriott, Hilton, Sheraton, Radisson, VISA, MasterCard and American Express.
On the same day that CWA released the report, a letter was sent to the CEO of each corporation. The letter explains that in our opinion the material they are profiting from violates the federal obscenity laws, which subjects them to criminal liability and asset forfeiture, and urges them to cease their involvement in pornography. We also advised them that we would share their response to our letter with our constituents.
First, the good news. American Express responded by saying "Since 2000, we have not allowed American Express Cards to be utilized for digital adult content (e.g., on Internet pornography sites). To the extent you have identified a merchant that has somehow gotten around our policy, we would appreciate you alerting us to this fact so we can take appropriate action. We hope this addresses your concerns."
We responded to American Express by providing them with printouts from 12 hard-core porn Web sites that displayed the American Express logo, including one site devoted to bestiality. American Express responded a second time:
Thank you for your letter of December 16th. We have checked the 12 adult content web sites you referenced and confirmed that 11 do not accept the American Express Card as payment. We were not able to locate the American Express logos that appeared on the print-outs you sent us, so they have apparently been taken down. One site you referenced was indeed accepting the American Express Card, which is counter to our policy. We have terminated that account. Thank you again for taking the time to contact us. To the extent you identify another merchant that may have circumvented our policy, we would appreciate you letting us know so we can take appropriate action.
Some of the corporations have responded by either denying that they would do anything illegal or claiming that they are just giving their customers what they want, or that they are just trying to keep up with their competitors. After you read the responses from the following companies, we encourage you to write them and let them know what you think:
American Express GIF | PDF
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Concerned Women for America 1015 Fifteenth St. N.W., Suite 1100 Washington, D.C. 20005 Phone: (202) 488-7000 Fax: (202) 488-0806 |
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