Digital Media

Grady Judd, the sheriff for Polk County in Florida, has followed in the anti-Craigslist footsteps of Cook County, Illinois, counterpart, Tom Dart.

In a sweep imaginatively titled "Operation Hot Date," the sheriff's forces arrested 28 women for allegedly advertising prostitution services on Craigslist.

The Smoking Gun quoted the sheriff as declaring that the site is still a "one-stop shop for all your prostitution needs."

I was not aware that there are other shops that require several stops to achieve similar ends, as it seems that local newspapers and other Web sites seem to offer ads of a rather similar nature to those on Craigslist.

(Credit: CC Acloudman/Flickr)

However, the sheriff accused the site of "facilitating prostitution" and suggested he is extremely gung-ho to take legal action against Craigslist.

The Smoking Gun, while mentioning that some alleged pimps were also rounded up in "Operation Hot Date," also focused on the suggestions that two of the women who allegedly arrived for assignations with undercover policemen were pregnant and that a third had fur-lined handcuffs.

However, some might find it more interesting that six of these women are smiling in their mugshots.

Could they perhaps have felt that there is a certain sense of futility in such police action?

One thing is for sure, if a story reported yesterday is accurate, Henry McMaster, the attorney general for South Carolina is no expert at fighting prostitution.

Earlier this month, McMaster threatened Craigslist with criminal prosecution if the online classifieds site, did not do more to remove prostitution ads on its site. But according to a report by The Associated Press, McMaster said Thursday he has "never handled a single such case in more than six years as the state's top prosecutor."

"I don't think this office has handled any prostitution prosecutions ever," McMaster was quoted by the AP. "This is something different. This is against the biggest want ads Web site in the world."

McMaster and a number of other state attorneys general demanded in the past several weeks for Craigslist to close down the publication's "erotic" section. They claim the area was rife with solicitations for sex that often involved minors and people who forced into prostitution against their will.

Craigslist agreed to replace the erotic section with a new adult section and also began reviewing every ad to ensure it met with the site's terms of service before it appeared online. While Craigslist was trying to implement these new measures, McMaster once again issued a threat of prosecution against Craigslist and its managers.

The AP spoke to Ann Bartow, a professor of Internet law at the University of South Carolina's School of Law. She said: "McMaster's decision to take on Craigslist and not local newspapers that advertise escort services suggests political motivations."

Craigslist has always said that the site was far more tame compared with many newspaper and competing online classified publications. McMaster, however argued that the volume of the prostitution ads made Craigslist a bigger threat.

"It is the vehicle of choice for prostitution in this country," McMaster told the AP. "They had been notified emphatically that those were prostitution ads."

Henry McMaster, the South Carolina attorney general who threatened Craigslist with criminal prosecution last week, must assume Web users and the people of his state don't take the time to read.

Henry McMaster, South Carolina's attorney general is no longer threatening Craigslist with prosecution.

(Credit: SCattorneygeneral.org)

Just a few hours after Craigslist announced that it had filed a lawsuit against McMaster for making threats and alleging managers of the site were in some way responsible for prostitution ads that have appeared on the site, McMaster claimed victory.

He suggested that it was he and his threats that prompted Craigslist to implement changes to the site, such as setting up a system to review ads before they appear in the new "adult" section and the deleting of the "erotic" section.

"Overnight (Craigslist) removed the erotic services section from their Web site as we asked them to do," McMaster wrote on his site Wednesday. "And they are now taking responsibility for the content of their future advertisements. If they keep their word, this is a victory for law enforcement and for the people of South Carolina."

As anyone who has followed this story knows, Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster announced a week ago that he planned to implement a monitoring system for adult ads and do away with the erotic section. This was well before Friday when McMaster posted a note on his site saying he was going ahead with criminal prosecution.

Craigslist had come under scrutiny after law enforcement agencies complained that the site's erotic category was a digital meat market where prostitutes and pimps could safely conduct business. On Wednesday, the state of New York announced it had made seven arrests in connection with an alleged prostitution ring that operated on Craigslist's erotic section.

Craigslist has worked with state attorneys general from across the country to try to find a way to curb sex solicitation on the site. In November, 40 state attorneys general, including McMaster, were part of an agreement with Craigslist that saw the service adopt a series of changes, such as requiring anyone posting to the erotic section to provide phone and credit card numbers. Craigslist met again with a small number of attorneys general earlier this month after a woman was murdered by a man who allegedly found her ad on Craigslist's erotic section.

The important thing here is that McMaster refrained from making more threats and his comments apparently signal he will not be filing criminal charges.

"We trust (Craigslist executives) will now adhere to the higher standards they have promised," McMaster wrote. "This office and the law enforcement agencies of South Carolina will continue to monitor the site to make certain that our laws are respected."

McMaster never had legal grounds in which to prosecute Craigslist managers, according to Matt Zimmerman of the the Electronic Frontier Foundation. He told CNET News the Communication Decency Act protects Web sites like Craigslist from being held criminally liable for the actions of users.

After reading McMaster's comments, some may conclude that one of two events transpired: McMaster didn't get the memo that Craigslist was well on its way to changing the site to satisfy the demands made by a group of attorneys general earlier this month.

Or, the AG simply used the controversy surrounding the online sex trade, a problem that apparently has no easy answers, to drum up a few easy press clippings.

Note at 7:50 a.m. PDT: Craigslist said it has filed suit against South Carolina's attorney general over his threats to prosecute the site. Read about it here.

Craigslist's managers have complied with the wishes of most of the state attorneys general who demanded they rid the site of prostitution ads.

The Web's dominant classifieds publication replaced its controversial "erotic" section with a new "adult" category. And where Craigslist once relied on readers to flag dodgy advertisements, the company's employees now review every ad submitted to the adult area before they appear online.

Yet, the site has been unable to block every solicitation for sex. Catherine, a self-described sex worker from San Francisco, confirmed for CNET that she successfully posted an ad for her services to the adult section late last week. She wished to remain anonymous, so neither the ad's photo nor text can be included in this story. Regardless, it isn't hard to find questionable ads in Craigslist's new adult section.

The most noticeable difference between Craigslist's erotic and adult categories is the photos. In the adult section, the photos are less provocative, less skin is showing. When it comes to the text, however, the two sections are very similar.

Both are packed with ads for massage services. Ads in both areas include descriptions of the masseuse's breast size ("I'm a natural C cup") and they are often photographed dressed in their underwear. Even if most of these services are legitimate, and only a few are veiled offers of sex in the new adult area, plenty of others make little if any pretense about what they offer.

These ads typically include words such as "busty," or "fantasy girl" in their descriptions. Often, they feature photos of a woman or man dressed provocatively in their underwear or bathing suit. Some include hourly rates.

Clearly, Craigslist faces a significant challenge as it tries to purge prostitution from its Web pages. While it can ban nude photos and overt offers of sex, how can anyone expect the site to outlaw ads featuring photos of bikini-clad women offering phone numbers? One can find racier images in department store ads.

The Internet has made it easier for merchants of all kinds to conduct commerce and reach wider audiences. Should anyone be surprised that the sex trade has benefited from this as well. If Craigslist were to disappear tomorrow, does anyone really expect that would curb prostitution?

Comparing Craigslist and Backpage.com
A review of some competing online classifieds shows that while Craigslist has been a popular destination for sex workers, it is by no means the only one.

For example, is an online classified publication and Craigslist competitor. The content it produces can also be found on the Web sites of some entertainment and alternative publications in major metropolitan areas, such as New York's Village Voice or San Francisco's SFWeekly.

Craigslist is G-rated compared with the photos found in Backpage's adult section. Ads included nude photos while others showed people engaged in sexual intercourse. A common ad would show a bare-chested woman asking men to call her at a phone number.

In the area of Backpage that services Charleston, S.C., one ad found on Tuesday by CNET featured a photo of a bare-chested woman apparently engaged in masturbation. It must be noted that there was nothing as graphic on Craigslist. This is relevant because Henry McMaster, South Carolina's attorney general, last week threatened Craigslist with a criminal investigation.

McMaster hasn't made any similar threats--at least none that has been publicized--against Backpage. Managers at Backpage did not respond to an interview request.

In November, Craigslist and 40 state attorneys general, including McMaster, signed an agreement that called for the site to add more safeguards. The classifieds publication followed through and one of the new changes was a new requirement that anyone posting to the erotic section must provide a credit card. All the parties hoped that criminals would be unwilling to provide identification and this would be deterrent.

"Many of the classified and communication services on the Craigslist site provide the public with a valuable service," McMaster wrote to Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster on May 5. "However, it appears that the management...has knowingly allowed the site to be used for illegal and unlawful activity after warnings from law enforcement officials and after an agreement with forty state attorneys general."

Since then, Craigslist did away with the erotic section and agreed to review every ad before it appeared, but McMaster was dissatisfied. He posted a note on his site that said the "Craigslist South Carolina site continues to display advertisements for prostitution and graphic pornographic material. This content was not removed as we requested. We have no alternative but to move forward with criminal investigation and potential prosecution."

This is at best an empty threat, says Matt Zimmerman, a senior staff attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

The Communication Decency Act protects Web sites like Craigslist from being held criminally liable for the actions of its users, Zimmerman said, who added that Craigslist has no legal obligation to even review ads before they go online.

Had Zimmerman had his way, Craigslist would have never agreed to do the monitoring. Craig Newmark, Craigslist's founder, had earlier gone on national TV and said that Craigslist would not do away with the erotic section. The company's reversal may have led McMaster to believe he could shame Craigslist managers into doing more than what the law required. "It made life more difficult for Craigslist I think," Zimmerman said.

"But I was much more disappointed with (McMaster) than Craigslist," Zimmerman said. "His threats were bogus to begin with and he was wrong to threaten (Craigslist's managers) with jail when the law is very clearly on their side."

Jim Buckmaster

Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster lashed out in a blog post at South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster for threatening to prosecute him and Craigslist founder Craig Newmark.

Buckmaster was responding to McMaster's accusations that Buckmaster, Newmark and Craigslist were engaging in illegal acts. This is the latest chapter in the effort by law enforcement officials from several states and cities to force Craigslist to do more to prevent ads for prostitution from appearing on the site. In an apparent move to placate attorneys general, Craigslist last week announced that it would replace the controversial "erotic section" with a new "adult section" and would not post any ad until it was reviewed by a human.

In his post at Craigslist.org, Buckmaster told McMaster that he was out of line in his claims that the changes at Craigslist didn't go far enough. Buckmaster is apparently indicating he believes the site has done enough to address the problem of prostitution.

"These very serious allegations followed the dramatic changes we implemented last week, widely applauded by other attorneys general," Buckmaster wrote. He also noted that the changes go far beyond alterations to the site that McMaster endorsed six months ago. The question is why is McMaster so outraged now?

Buckmaster noted that AT&T, Microsoft, and Village Voice Media, as well as major newspapers are posting very graphic ads in their "adult sections" and McMaster has not included them in his attacks. "What's a crime for Craigslist is clearly a crime for any company," Buckmaster wrote. "Are you really prepared to condemn the executives" ...from these "mainstream companies...Mr. McMaster, I strongly recommend you reconsider and retract your remarks."

Buckmaster said launching a criminal prosecution against Craigslist isn't warranted by the facts, and is barred by federal law.

"We're willing to accept our share of criticism," Buckmaster wrote, "but wrongfully accusing Craigslist of criminal misconduct is simply beyond the pale. We would very much appreciate an apology at your very earliest convenience."

So far, the South Carolina attorney general's office has declined to comment beyond a terse statement posted to its Web site on Friday, in which it said, "We have no alternative but to move forward with criminal investigation and potential prosecution."

Below is a copy of Buckmaster's blog post:

An Apology Is In Order

Dear South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster,

Two days ago you accused Craigslist, and me personally, of engaging in criminal acts, reiterating your previous threat to file unwarranted and unconstitutional charges against us that are clearly barred by federal law. As you put it, "We have no alternative but to move forward with criminal investigation and potential prosecution."

These very serious allegations followed the dramatic changes we implemented last week, widely applauded by other attorneys general, that go far beyond the policies and procedures you yourself personally endorsed just 6 months ago, as indicated by your signature on the joint statement.

So effective in fact, that our "adult services" and soon-to-be-retired "erotic services" sections combined, for all cities in South Carolina, currently feature a total of 40 ads, all of which comply with our terms of use. That's 40 ads out of a total of 334,180 currently listed on our SC sites. The rest comprise a thriving marketplace for South Carolinians, offering jobs, housing, for sale items, local services, and just about everything else.

Many prominent companies, including AT&T, Microsoft, and Village Voice Media, not to mention major newspapers and other upstanding South Carolina businesses feature more "adult services" ads than does Craigslist, some of a very graphic nature. For a small sampling, look (careful NSFW) here, and here, and here, and here, and here, and here, and here, and here, and here, and here, and here.

Have you fully considered the implications of your accusations against Craigslist? What's a crime for Craigslist is clearly a crime for any company. Are you really prepared to condemn the executives of each of the mainstream companies linked above, and all the others that feature such ads, as criminals? Craigslist may not matter in your world view, despite our popularity among your constituents, but mightn't you want an endorsement from any of the SC newspapers for your gubernatorial campaign, whose publishers you've just labeled as criminals? Do you really intend to launch a criminal investigation against the phone company? What about potential new jobs connected to big data center buildouts in SC by Internet companies? Are you sure you want prosecute all of their CEOs as criminals???

If you are threatening our founder Craig Newmark, a board member with no operational role at Craigslist other than as a customer service representative, then you are expanding your list of "criminal suspects" to include thousands of employees at the above-named companies, or the companies' boards of directors, or both.

Mr. McMaster, I strongly recommend you reconsider and retract your remarks, and positively affirm that you have no intention of launching criminal investigations aimed at any of these upstanding companies, because in truth none of them are deserving of such treatment. Certainly when it comes to Craiglist, by any objective standard your threats and accusations are unreasonable and unfair:

• threats of criminal prosecution are utterly unwarranted by the facts
• the charges threatened are unconstitutional and barred by federal law
• our adult ad screening regimen is stricter than the one you endorsed
• our adult services ads are fewer and tamer than other SC venues.

We're willing to accept our share of criticism, but wrongfully accusing Craigslist of criminal misconduct is simply beyond the pale. We would very much appreciate an apology at your very earliest convenience. As I'm sure would all of the other fine companies whose executives you've called out as criminals.

Sincerely yours,

Jim Buckmaster
CEO, Craigslist

The biggest difference between Craigslist soon-to-be defunct "erotic services" and the new "adult services" sections will be human monitoring.

Jim Buckmaster

Craigslist on Wednesday announced that the Web classifieds site will do away with its controversial "erotic services" section and replace it with a new "adult services" section. The move comes after Craigslist managers were pressured by several state attorneys general to help remove from their site the posting of numerous ads for prostitution.

All the texts and photos within ads submitted to the adults section will be reviewed by a Craigslist employee before being posted, said CEO Jim Buckmaster in an interview with CNET News. With erotic services, Craigslist relied on users to flag questionable ads and also required those who submitted ads to use a credit card. The thinking behind the idea was that wrong doers would be less inclined to post ads if they had to provide identification.

The first thing the new changes will mean is that it should be much harder to post prostitution ads to the adult section. Filtering text and photos means that ads will also take much longer to appear on Craigslist than in the past.

"There will be a wait," Buckmaster said. "It's not going to be like the rest of the site where ads will go up in 15 minute or less. We don't know exactly what that wait will be long-term. It will probably be longer (than 30 minutes initially). New ads will only be reviewed during business hours. Ads posted outside of business hours will wait until business hours will resume."

Another major change will be the cost to post. Postings to adult services will cost $10, but once approved, will be eligible for reposting at $5. The cost to post to the soon-to-be banned erotic services section was $5.

Buckmaster and Craigslist's founder Craig Newmark have always prided themselves on keeping the site's operating costs down. That's why, for most of its existence, Craigslist has employed barely two dozen people to operate a site that services millions of people in the United States and about 50 countries. The site now has 30 employees. How many staff members Craigslist plans to add is still undetermined said Buckmaster.

Those critical of the state attorneys general who pressured Craigslist to make the changes, including AGs from Illinois and South Carolina, say that sex workers are likely to respond by just posting more discreet ads in other areas of the site. Buckmaster said the service is prepared for that.

"We're going to be looking for that," Buckmaster said. "We have blocking and filtering technologies in place site wide. And of course our flagging system remains fully in effect across all the categories, but we will be monitoring that situation."

Asked what kind of impact these changes will have on prostitution, Buckmaster would only talk about Craigslist.

"We're optimistic this will be the right balance," he continued. As always, we never consider our work to be done. We continue to evaluate all aspects of the site."

"What we're trying top do is strike a new balance with respect to all of the feedback from the concerned groups, including the attorneys general," Buckmaster continued. "Trying to incorporate all of that feedback and reach the best possible balance we're able to, is what we've sought to do with this new set of measures."

Catherine, a 35-year-old sex worker in San Francisco, is disgusted with U.S. lawmakers for demanding that Craigslist abolish the "erotic services" section.

Craig Newmark, Craigslist founder

She says she knew something was amiss on Monday when she attempted to post an ad, offering a massage with "a happy ending." Catherine, who posts on Craigslist about eight times a month, was prevented from posting and couldn't understand why.

"This is ridiculous," Catherine told CNET News. "It is a sign of an immature society to repress sexuality. You're going to create more violence by doing this. The more you repress or distort sexuality, the more problems you create." She described the move by the state attorneys general as "completely incompetent."

Craig Newmark, the man who founded Craigslist, said less than a month ago that there were no plans to dump the erotic-services category. But on Wednesday, the site announced that the Web classifieds publication will do away with its controversial "erotic services" section and replace it with a new "adult services" section. The biggest difference between them will be that for the first time all text and photos will be manually reviewed before they are posted in adult services.

Catherine, who has lived in the United States for 10 years, spoke with CNET News on the condition that she would remain anonymous. She asked to be identified in the article as "Catherine," after the actress, Catherine Deneuve, who played the role of a young housewife moonlighting as a prostitute in the film "Belle de Jour."

She said she can't believe that anyone would think shutting down Craigslist's erotic-services section will prevent prostitution. She said that people like her will attempt to post ads that will avoid detection by the human screeners. If that fails, she predicts that people will go to sites like Eros.com or elsewhere.

"I spoke with one of my clients," Catherine said. "The man is a bank official and he was devastated when he heard (the Craigslist) news."

Craigslist, the online classifieds publication much loved by users for declining to charge a fee for most of its services, issued a statement Wednesday about the closing of its "erotic services" section and the opening of a new "adult services" section:

Striking A Balance

As of today for all US craigslist sites, postings to the "erotic services" category will no longer be accepted, and in 7 days the category will be removed.

Also effective today for all US sites, a new category entitled "adult services" will be opened for postings by legal adult service providers. Each posting to this new category will be manually reviewed before appearing on the site, to ensure compliance with craigslist posting guidelines and terms of use. New postings will cost $10, but once approved, will be eligible for reposting at $5.

Unsurprisingly, but completely contrary to some of the sensationalistic journalism we've seen these past few weeks, the record is clear that use of craigslist classifieds is associated with far lower rates of violent crime than print classifieds, let alone rates of violent crime pertaining to American society as a whole.

The relative safety of craigslist compared to print classifieds is likely due to some combination of:

* Measures such as blocking, screening, and telephone verification
* Community moderation via flagging system
* Electronic trail ensures violent criminals are quickly caught
* Personal safety tips prominently posted
* Unusually high level of cooperation with law enforcement

Community moderation as exemplified by our flagging system is arguably the most successful system ever conceived for eliminating inappropriate activity from a massive internet community. Working in tandem with various other protective technologies, it is an inescapable force to be reckoned with for anyone set on abusing free internet communications across a broad array of posting types.

However, with respect to this new paid category for advertising by legal businesses, we will experiment with some of the methods traditionally employed in paid print classifieds.

We'd like to thank everyone who has provided helpful input over the past few weeks, all of which we've closely considered:

* Our users, whose suggestions have shaped every aspect of craigslist
* Attorneys General, who have provided valuable constructive criticism
* Law Enforcement officers nationwide, who have been hugely supportive
* Legal businesses concerned at their right to advertise being questioned
* EFF and other legal experts defending free speech and Internet law

We are optimistic that the new balance struck today will be an acceptable compromise from the perspective of these constituencies, and for the diverse US communities that value and rely upon craigslist.

Note: Our announced intention to contribute 100% of net revenues for the "erotic services" category to charity has been fulfilled, and will continue to be fulfilled, notwithstanding criticism questioning our good faith in this regard. However, in light of today's changes, and to avoid any future misunderstanding, we are making no representation regarding how revenue from the "adult services" category will be used. Our commitment to philanthropy remains however, and craigslist will continue to develop its charitable initiatives.

Craigslist's San Francisco headquarters. The company agrees to remove ads from its erotic-services section.

(Credit: Greg Sandoval/CNET)

Updated at 9:33 a.m. PT to include a statement from Craigslist and correct an error. See details below.

Craigslist has yielded to law enforcement officials from all over the country, deciding to dismantle its "erotic services" ads.

"As of (Wednesday), for all U.S. Craigslist sites, postings to the erotic-services category will no longer be accepted," the publication said in a statement. "In seven days, the category will be removed. Also effective today for all U.S. sites, a new category entitled 'adult services' will be opened for postings by legal adult service providers.

"Each posting to this new category will be manually reviewed before appearing on the site to ensure compliance with Craigslist posting guidelines and terms of use. New postings will cost $10, but once approved, will be eligible for reposting at $5." (To read Craigslist's full statement go here)

For the past several months, authorities have claimed that Craigslist has become a seedy digital street corner where prostitution is rampant.

ABCNews.com is reporting that Craigslist's decision comes after the company's attorneys met with Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, as well as with the attorneys general of Connecticut and Missouri. According to an Associated Press report, the states' officials demanded that the site pull ads that they contend are advertisements for illegal sexual activities.

Lawmakers from a number of states have claimed that Craigslist's erotic-services section is a huge Internet bordello, where thousands of people solicit for sex. Law enforcement officials have complained for years that prostitutes are more difficult to apprehend on Craigslist because they are cloaked in the anonymity that that service offers those who post ads.

Craigslist's managers responded to the complaints by trying to create deterrents, such as requiring anyone posting an ad in the erotic-services section to provide a credit card number. They have pointed out in the past that prostitutes don't need the Web publication or its erotic-services section to do business, and they have predicted that doing away with the section will only push people to solicit similarly in the site's other areas.

But Craigslist received some bad press after a woman was murdered and two others were robbed in the Boston area. The alleged killer reportedly found his victims via Craigslist ads, and media outlets began calling him the "Craigslist killer." Police have arrested a suspect in that case.

"Completely contrary to some of the sensationalistic journalism we've seen these past few weeks," Craigslist said in the statement, "the record is clear that use of Craigslist classifieds is associated with far lower rates of violent crime than print classifieds, let alone rates of violent crime pertaining to American society as a whole."

Correction: This report misstated the number of recent murder victims in connection with the alleged Boston-area "Craigslist killer." There is reportedly one.