The Pimps of Profit

This is quite a racket these guys have going. They make millions by providing adult content and then mobilize the resultant moral outrage to elect politicians who will slash their taxes and deregulate their business. Profits on both ends.

Adelphia Communications Corp., the country's fifth-largest cable television provider, last week became the first to offer hard-core adult films on pay-per-view to its subscribers.

'It's a very lucrative source of funds,' said Dennis McAlpine, a media and entertainment industry analyst.

...While the corporations generate millions in profits from providing adult content, their political contributions are often given to those elected, in no small part, because of their stance on 'moral values.'

According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Cable has given millions in political donations since 1998. The national Republican Party committees are its biggest organizational recipient, with donations totaling $851,000. President Bush is its biggest individual recipient with $109,000 in donations.

Adelphia has given $166,000 to Republican committees, $17,000 to conservative Rep. John Peterson, R-Pa., and $12,000 to Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa., one of the most conservative members of the Senate.