Talking dirty in Westwood

That's what I'll be doing Wednesday Nov. 28 at the Armand Hammer Museum when I host a panel discussion on the Valley's porn industry, called "Dirty Business: Should the Porn Industry Be Saved?" The idea came after the Daily News published a series on the Valley's porn business, which you can find online here.

One of the more popular parts of the series was the map of porn studios in the Valley, and it got me thinking that people are really interested in knowing more about this huge but mostly shunned industry in LA. I wish I could link the map for you, but the weird way we've done the online package means I can't find a link. You'll just have to poke through the series (which is still ongoing) and read for yourself. I'm also not posting a photo for this because I don't want to be accused of looking for porn on the company computer.

Here's some more info about the event.

Moderated by Mariel Garza of the Los Angeles Daily News

Los Angeles' dirty little economic secret is its $12-billion-a-year pornography industry, located primarily in the San Fernando Valley. Competition from amateur porn on the Internet, piracy and other pressures are cutting into profits. The question is: Should we care? How much should the industry's health risks weigh against its economic value? And how important is the issue of morality when we're talking about jobs, sales receipts, and tax dollars? Zócalo brings together a panel of experts—porn producers and former actors Nina Hartley and Ira Levine, economist Jack Kyser, and Sharon Mitchell of the Adult Industry Medical Health Care Foundation - to discuss whether or not L.A.'s porn industry is a boon or a burden.

Click here to find out more about the lecture series and to reserve your FREE seat for this exciting panel.