By Phil Burress*

July 2010 – More than 20 years ago, AFA brought to the attention of its readers that Holiday Inn was selling in-room pornography. In those days, the pornography sold to hotels was called cable view, a form of content that cable companies sold that many believed was not illegal. Fast forward 20 years and we find that hardcore, sexually explicit pornography is being offered in most major hotels.

It was under then Attorney General Janet Reno that the U.S. Department of Justice first refused to enforce federal laws prohibiting the sale of mainstream hardcore porn. That part of Reno’s legacy is still intact today. The lack of enforcement of federal obscenity laws has wreaked havoc on America’s men, women, children, marriages and communities. It has given a green light to major hotel operators such as Marriott, assuring them they can ignore the law and get richer by selling in-room hardcore illegal pornography.

LodgeNet, a Sioux Falls, South Dakota, company, supplies the hardcore pornography to hotels via satellite. That, too, is a violation of Federal Code 1462. It is estimated that 60%-70% of LodgeNet’s revenue is generated from the sale of illegal hardcore pornography.

Many think the type of pornography sold by LodgeNet and hotels is not the worst type of pornography. Not so. It is the worst of the worst. Marriott offers over 100 titles of movies using derogatory terms that describe women in the worst way.

Marriott committed to peddle porn
On May 14, 2008, a group of pro-family leaders met with four high level Marriott officials at Family Research Council in Washington, D.C. We requested the meeting to discuss this issue. In spite of the proven harms that were discussed, Marriott stood firm, and now, two years later the chain still sells hundreds of in-room hardcore porn movies.

When it became widely known that former presidential candidate Mitt Romney was on the Marriott board, pro-family groups hoped things might change. Unfortunately, they have not.

Then, thinking Marriott officials just didn’t realize the depravity of what they were selling, we gave them a list of titles that are too offensive to print in the AFA Journal. Suffice it to say, some of the tamer categories offered by LodgeNet include Ultimate Threesomes, True Lesbian Sex and Adult Desires Menu. Specific movie titles themselves are far more vulgar and pornographic.

When Marriott refused to abandon its porn business, the pro-family leaders asked Marriott officials for a small change to protect children in their hotel rooms. We asked them to require adult hotel guests who wanted porn to visit the front desk and ask that the pornography channels be made available in their room.

Current policy is that pornographic movies are available 24/7 and the burden to disconnect the porn is on the customer. The policy we suggested would protect children from accidentally accessing hardcore pornography and would provide a way for the hotel to verify the customer’s age. Marriott refused.

Clearly, Marriott only cares about one thing – money, the bottom line. Company executives don’t care who they hurt or what harm comes from their reckless behavior.

Clean hotels serve families
Now the question is: Why would anyone do business with Marriott or any other hotel that sells hardcore pornography? That question raises yet another one: How do we know which hotel /motel sells hardcore pornography? Fortunately, pro-family groups and some hotel owners have taken up the cause of the family.

Over a two year period, Citizens for Community Values, long affiliated with AFA, surveyed via phone over 40,000 hotels in America. We asked personnel at each hotel if they offered pay-per-view movies. If they answered yes, we then asked if they offered “adult” (the common hotel euphemism for porn) movies. If they said no, they were added to a Clean Hotels list. If they said yes, we added them to a Dirty Hotels list.

To make this information available to people who want to stay in porn-free hotels, we built a Web site: www.cleanhotels.com. At that site, traveling families can now identify and book a clean hotel room for family vacation. It’s a truly family friendly antidote to pro-porn hotels such as the Marriott chain.   

*Phil Burress is executive director of Citizens for Community Values, Cincinnati, Ohio.

Why use clean hotels?

1. Help families avoid businesses that sell pornography.
2. Give your familly’s patronage to family-friendly hotels.
3. Avoid exposing yourself and your family to temptation.

To respond to Marriott Hotel’s refusal to even regulate porn in their hotel rooms, write: CEO Bill Marriott, Marriott Hotels, Marriott Drive, Washington, DC 20058
Internet: www.marriott.com; Phone: 888-236-2427