Professor of sociology at Columbia University, Sudhir Venkatesh talks about common myths about prostitution at the Washington Post.
Myth number 5:
Closing Craigslist’s “adult services” section will significantly affect the sex trade.
Although Craigslist offered customers an important means to connect with sellers of sexual services, its significance has probably been exaggerated.
Even before the site’s “adult services” section was shut down, it was falling out of favor among many users. Adolescent pranksters were placing ads as hoaxes. And because sex workers knew that cops were spending a lot of time responding to ads, they were increasingly hesitant to answer solicitations. I found that 80 percent of the men who contacted women via Craigslist in New York never consummated their exchange with a meeting.