The People Vs. Larry Flynt: Film Analysis

Voters in most secular nations generally don’t care about the sex lives of their elected officials and an extramarital affair isn’t necessarily the end of a political career. The political climate is obviously very different in America and, accordingly, many lawmakers portray a public image of conservative values while leading very different private lives. After all, former Seattle Police Chief Norm Stamper once wrote that it was “common to find in a prostitute’s little black book the names of prominent locals--businessmen, elected officials, judges, athletes, cops.” That’s not a surprise as there are numerous examples of politicians who have legislated with intolerance while behaving as if they’re exempt from the same laws. Time and time
Charles Keating was a well-respected attorney turned banker who leveraged his money and power to become the face of the anti-pornography movement during the 1960s and 1970s. If his name isn’t familiar, this staunch conservative was portrayed in the film The People vs. Larry Flynt. According to Keating, pornography was part of a “communist conspiracy” and he founded an anti-pornography group, Citizens for Decent Literature. In response to the zealous efforts by Keating and other advocates, Congress in 1967 authorized a Presidential Committee on Obscenity and Pornography to thoroughly study this
Time Magazine’s “Crusader of the Year” in 2002 developed a much-deserved reputation because he was the rare breed who actually pursued much-needed cases against major Wall Street firms while serving as New York’s Attorney General. However, Spitzer also targeted petty vice crimes such as gambling and prostitution, which he referred to as “modern day slavery.” In fact, as New York’s Governor he signed human trafficking legislation that increased the penalties for the buyers of sex from a misdemeanor to a felony. He did so despite feedback from sex worker rights organizations. They warned how those penalties do more harm than good because it inhibits people from coming forward with important