Pornographic Politics: What Politicians Stole From Pornographers
Dr Tim Gregory
29 May, 7pm

In a time when the authentic image is routinely questioned and a rupture of expectations has become the signifier of truth, how do politicians communicate a sincere message? Borrowing the notion of the “designed taboo” from pornography, politicians have learned how to become real through disclosure, confession and apology. The paradox (inadvertently first discovered by President Clinton during the Lewinsky scandal) is that disclosure of the right sin increases popularity. This talk will map this connection through analysis of Hustler’s “Who’s Nailin’ Paylin?” in order to suggest the pornographic industry is ahead of politics on understanding how the image works.

Tim Gregory is Lecturer in Theory at Curtin University, W.A. He is a researcher at the Center for Contemporary Art and Politics and has published and exhibited widely on the nexus of pornography and politics.