'Choking' in porn has become the new normal. Here’s why a new UK law banning it is so vital | Clare McGlynn
Strangulation during sex damages young women’s brain health and breeds deep gender inequality. But the real test will be its enforcementThis week marks a turning point in the UK’s approach...
By Clare McGlynn · The Guardian Opinion
Strangulation during sex damages young women’s brain health and breeds deep gender inequality. But the real test will be its enforcement This week marks a turning point in the UK’s approach to violent porn. The government has announced it will make publishing or possessing pornographic depictions of strangulation or suffocation – often known as “choking” – illegal. This bold move could transform the porn that appears on porn sites and social media platforms. Strangulation in porn was once niche. Indeed, studies investigating the content of porn 20 years ago found hardly any instances of it. Yet an independent review of pornography released this year found that it was rife on the most popular porn sites. This summer the children’s commissioner released a report revealing that 58% of young people had seen strangulation in pornography, even though only 6% had searched for it. As renowned porn producer Erika Lust puts it , strangulation has become the “alpha and omega” of “any porn scene”. Clare McGlynn is a professor of law at Durham University and author of Exposed: The Rise of Extreme Porn and How We Fight Back (out in 2026) Continue reading...