Pornography.

Defined as material, such as writing or pictures, designed to arouse sexual desire, pornography has been in existence for centuries and found popularity across every culture. For the latter half of the twentieth century, the majority of pornography was directed at heterosexual males, with the audience being primarily White and middle class. With the advent of the Internet, all forms of pornography became easy to access and the demographics of viewers expanded. There has long been a social stigma, or a non-pecuniary cost, associated with the use of sexually explicit materials (Kendall, 2006). However, social mores have loosened over time, and the shame or stigma associated with viewing pornography has also decreased. Pornography is also a "hot button" issue for many feminists—some of whom feel that all pornographic material depicting women degrades and objectifies women. Other opponents of pornography base their views on religious or moral grounds and see the consumption of pornographic material as a threat to the family and society. Social scientists continue to study the effects of long-term exposure to pornography on intimate relationships, as well as the relationship between exposure to pornography and sexually deviant behavior.