Press Inquiries
- Voicemail: 347-748-9163
- For press inquiries email: Dylan Wolf, swank@riseup.net
Please note, we will ask all members of the press, journalists (whether professional or student) to review the document below after making initial contact. You can save time by reviewing it in advance.
Dear Member of the Press,
Thank you so much for contacting SWANK and SWOP-NYC. We’ve created this document for journalists like you who wish to educate themselves more thoroughly on sex worker issues, especially as they relate to the interviewing and writing of articles on sex workers. We send this document to everyone who is interested in interviewing our chapter members or our affiliates.
The purpose of this document is twofold. Firstly, we’d like to familiarize you with the basic terminology used in our movement so as to minimize confusion. Secondly, we want to call your attention to the specific ethical issues and concerns that emerge when interviewing current or former sex workers, and, in some cases, our allies. Please follow-up with any questions that you may have before your interview. This document exists in order to minimize confusion and the potential for inadvertent harm as a result of media coverage. While we understand that you must take many ethical considerations into account in your journalism, if you do not believe in good faith that you can fully follow these guidelines, then please alert your interviewee ahead of time of your concerns.
When you consent to read this document, you are stating that you understand and take responsibility for knowing:
- The difference between correct and incorrect terminology when describing sex workers as well as how to use these terms fairly and accurately,
- The special privacy and security needs that our community members must have respected in order to safely participate.
We truly look forward to working with you and welcome your suggestions and feedback on this document.
Respectfully,
SWANK (Sex Workers Action New York)/SWOP-NYC (Sex Workers Outreach Project – NYC)
Definition of Terms
What is a sex worker?
Our membership uses the term sex worker to refer to all people who provide erotic services in the sex industry. This umbrella term includes dominatrices, street-based workers, call girls, escorts, brothel workers, porn stars, foot fetish models, peep show workers, strippers, phone sex operators, and much more. It does not include management unless the management is involved in directly providing sexual services to clients in addition to their management duties. It is worth noting that some people who trade sex or sexual services prefer not to put a label on this activity.
Other Common Terms
Prostitute is a legal term that has fallen into common use. Sex workers whose jobs you may feel fall under the heading “prostitute” typically self-identify as something else entirely and this difference may actually be quite crucial to their jobs and livelihood. Please do not use the word prostitute to describe a sex worker unless they expressly consent to you using this term. The same applies for using the terms “call-girl,” “hooker,” “whore,” “ho,” and “escort.” In addition, because prostitution is defined by state law, its contexts and meanings vary widely depending on the locale. For these reasons as well as legal liabilities, it is always best to use the terms a sex worker uses to describe their own identity.
In addition, the slang terms “whore,” “ho,” “hooker,” and similarly pejorative words are inappropriate when describing sex workers or any other person and their work. Please extend the same courtesies you do other groups when interviewing or describing sex workers and do not use these terms unless they have expressly told you they want to use these terms and/or be quoted as such. In these special cases, when you write your final article please make it clear that these terms have been set by the interviewee themselves so that other journalists and the public will know that you and your outlet are not condoning the use of pejorative terms.
Street worker is more accurate and preferable to “street walker.” Many people who are on the streets are not sex workers.
“Prostitution ring” is an oft-used and sensationalistic euphemism for what is commonly known as an escort agency. We can find escort agencies in the yellow pages, but we never find prostitution rings. Please refrain from describing your interviewee as being involved in a “prostitution ring.” Furthermore, an avoidance of this term in your greater article demonstrates to your present and future sex worker interviewees that you are a committed and trustworthy journalist who is not simply dabbling in sex worker hype.
Decriminalization vs. Legalization
Many sex workers rights organizations support the decriminalization of sex work, not most models of its legalization. While in common speech, these terms may seem interchangeable, from a legal and policy perspective they are distinct, and within these two frameworks, there is much variation. As such, it is in the interest of accurate report that you do not use these terms interchangeably. For further clarification on the distinction between the two, we recommend that you contact the Sex Workers Project, a legal aid clinic, at (646) 602-5617.
Basic Privacy Concerns and Needs of Sex Workers
Sex workers have to cope with deep social stigma and misconceptions about the work they do. We are honored that you as a member of the press are interested in helping us clarify these issues to the greater public. Here are some brief guidelines as to how to you can help protect the privacy and maintain the security that is so central to the smooth functioning of our lives:
- Please do not use details including descriptions from any printed, or web material that describes us in our work capacity in your article. For instance, an escort would almost always not want you to use phrases from their website to describe them. Clients will be able to recognize the description and then they will also know details about the escort’s private life from your article. They may even be able to use the information to blackmail the sex worker and/or their loved ones.
- Since descriptions can be so identifying and thus dangerous for sex workers, please make every effort to run the description you are planning to use by your interviewee before it hits print.
- Generally, please be vigilant about refraining from printing any assumptions about what category you feel the type(s) of sex work or other identities of your interviewee fall under. Individuals working in the industry may identify as female (including transwomen), male (including transmen), transgender, or something else entirely, and we encourage you to reflect this diversity and respect their chosen gender expression. The same holds true for sexual orientation- it is very common for sex workers to work with clients of genders they would not normally see in their personal lives and vice-versa. As such, please politely inquire rather than make assumptions about how an individual identifies themselves- especially because those assumptions can present real danger to their personal and professional lives. Once you have learned how an individual prefers to be described, please use only the identifiers to which your interviewee consents.
Thank you for taking the extra time and energy to ensure that your reporting is ethical, accurate, and considerate on this issue.
