The last time she hooked up, she said, it was because “his personality put me at ease. He was straight to the point. He asked me the same questions I was asking him.” Plus, she liked that his real name matched his email address. From there, she was able to find his Facebook page, with numerous photographs. When Ashley (not her real name) finally had her rendezvous, she took down his license plate number and texted it to herself on a second cellphone, which she’d left on her kitchen table along with a note for friends and family, just in case she didn’t return. And then she collected her $500 an hour.
Welcome to prostitution in the Internet era.
Fifteen years ago, it was hard to find hookers on the Web. Now they are all over the place. The Internet has given rise to a new generation of sex workers who have more autonomy than ever before, and by and large enjoy a level of safety not shared by their street-walking sisters. Nonetheless, Internet prostitution is a risky business, and those hazards were underscored this month when the bodies of four women were found decomposing on the side of the road near Jones Beach on Long Island. Attention quickly turned to two missing call girls who’d been using Craigslist as their primary means of making connections. It turned out that neither woman was among the victims, but the grisly discovery put an unwanted spotlight back on Craigslist, which in September took down its U.S. erotic-services directory under pressure from law enforcement and human-rights groups. Last week, it pulled its worldwide adult-services ads. (Though Craigslist has managed to get most sex solicitation off its site, it hasn’t completely succeeded, as Ashley can tell you.)
David Henry Sterry has numerous stories about how the lives of prostitutes have changed in the past decade. Last year, he edited Hos, Hookers, Call Girls, and Rent Boys: Prostitutes Writing on Life, Love, Work, Sex, and Money, an anthology that received a stamp of approval from The New York Times. He’s also a former sex worker himself, a rare example of a man who earned his living pleasing older women. (The only common thread connecting his clients, he said, was that they all had money and “most felt powerless because they were housewives, bored, and rich.”)
One of the women who appeared in his book called herself Kat, worked on Craigslist, and had an elaborate screening process in which she would force potential johns to drive up to the location of the assignations, get out of their cars, and stand there while she examined them from a nearby window with a pair of binoculars. Kat refused to talk to anyone with a blocked number. She also chose not to text. If you sent her a photo of your genitalia, a common mistake among potential johns, you were out of contention. “She had developed what she called a ‘hooker’s radar,’” Sterry said. “The tone of the guy’s voice, his walk, she had learned how to instantly size someone up. And if the guy looked sketchy or too much like a toad, she would stop returning his phone calls.”
“People who think they’re going to eliminate prostitution or violence in prostitution by shutting down Craigslist are wildly deluded,” said David Henry Sterry.
Another Internet-era phenomenon that’s friendly to business and helps boost security for prostitutes and johns alike is “the mixer.” This is a cocktail party-like event at which “hobbyists”—the current euphemism of choice for high-spending porn aficionados obsessed with bonking their favorite screen stars—get to meet potential dates. No sex typically takes place on site, explained Daily Beast contributor Richard Abowitz, a chronicler of life in Las Vegas, where the parties frequently occur. “It’s more like a job fair,” he said.
We’ve provided you with nearly 300 in-depth features, galleries and how-tos in the past year to help you navigate the social media world.
Here you’ll find a comprehensive list of all of those posts, covering everything from how to enhance your
We’ve broken the posts into categories including the big ideas about social media, the most popular social sites, including Facebook and
If you’re looking to get caught up on — or re-read —
About Social Media
- How Social Media Has Changed Us
- 5 Insightful TED Talks on Social Media
- 5 Levels of Effective Communication in the Social Media Age
- Why Social Media Means Big Opportunities for Women
- The Science of Building Trust With Social Media
- How Companies Are Using Your Social Media Data
- Why User Competency Matters in Social Design
- 10 Essential Design Tools for Social Media Pros
- Why Content Curation Is Here to Stay
- Inside Gatorade’s Social Media Command Center
- Why Feedback and Filters are Necessary in Social Media
- 9 Universal Principles of Viral Media Sites
- Why Social Experience is the Future of Online Content
- 10 Beautiful Social Media Infographics
- A Look Back at the Last 5 Years in Social Media
- 5 Huge Trends in Social Media Right Now
- 5 Trends Affecting How We Connect Through Social Media
- The Next 5 Years in Social Media
- Why Facebook’s Privacy Changes are Detrimental to Users
- How Facebook Can Become a Money Making Machine
- HOW TO: Keep Your Facebook Updates Private
- HOW TO: Block FarmVille on Facebook
- 4 Easy Ways to Engage Your Facebook Fans
- Facebook vs. Google: The Billion Dollar Battle to Be Your Default Social Profile
- How a Facebook Group Helped Reunite a Band for Charity
- HOW TO: Clean Up Your Facebook Profile
- 5 Ways Facebook Changed Dating (For the Worse)
- HOW TO: Disable Facebook’s “Instant Personalization” [PRIVACY]
- 5 Ways Facebook’s Open Graph Will Impact E-commerce
- HOW TO: Find Long Lost Friends on Facebook
- In Defense of Facebook
- How Facebook Makes Edgy Concepts Mainstream
- Why Facebook Must Get Serious About Privacy
- HOW TO: Send a Real Gift on Facebook
- How Does Facebook View the World?
- Why Facebook Can’t Genuinely Connect People
- 3 Things Facebook Does Very Well
- 10 Cool Facebook Status Tips and Tricks
- My Facebook Story: An Inside Look at Facebook’s First Privacy Fiasco
- 10 Fascinating Facebook Facts
- HOW TO: Put Facebook’s “Like” Button on Any Website
- 5 Ways Facebook Questions Can Be Improved
- A Closer Look at the Privacy Features of Facebook Places [PICS]
- A Field Guide to Using Facebook Places
- 5 Useful Facebook Trend and Search Services
- Facebook Privacy: 6 Years of Controversy [INFOGRAPHIC]
- 5 Fun FarmVille Accessories
- 3 Tips for Maximizing Engagement With Facebook “Likes” and Shares
- Facebook vs. Google and the Battle for Identity on the Web [OP-ED]
- The Biggest Brands on Facebook [INFOGRAPHIC]
- The New Facebook Messages: A Walkthrough [SCREENSHOTS]
- 5 Facebook Profile Photos to Avoid
- 10 Creative Uses of the New Facebook Profile [PICS]
- HOW TO: Add Captions To Your YouTube Videos
- 10 Amazing Magic Trick Videos on YouTube
- Exclusive: Inside YouTube’s War Room
- HOW TO: Boost Your SEO with a YouTube Channel
- EXCLUSIVE: Behind the Scenes at the “Married on MySpace” Wedding [VIDEO]
- HOW TO: Make a Great How-To Video
- 4 Tips for Producing Quality Web Videos
- 10 Best World Cup Goals on YouTube
- 5 Ways to Build a Loyal Audience on YouTube
- 6 Tips For Experimenting with Web Video
- 15 Fab Flash Mob Videos on YouTube
- 5 Handy YouTube Channels for DIY and Home Improvement
- Why Hulu’s New Dance Show is a Game-Changer
- How Social Media has Changed the Game for Documentary Filmmaking
- 5 Inspiring Celebrity Videos Tell Gay Teens “It Gets Better”
- 3 Things Any Video Needs to Go Viral
- 5 Ways to Get a Job Through YouTube
- HOW TO: Become a YouTube Sensation
- 5 Fresh Places to Find Great Online Video
- How To Make Your Music Video Go Viral: 10 Tips From Cee-Lo, OK Go & More
- HOW TO: Create Free Music Playlists Online
- Why MySpace Can Still Win as a Music Destination
- Musicians Can Help Each Other Get Famous with New Site
- How Rdio Makes Your Music Mix Social
- 7 Superb Podcasts for Summer Listening
- 8 YouTube Channels for Unique Music Performances
- 10 Ways Touring Bands Can Leverage Location Apps
- Exclusive: Trent Reznor on “The Social Network” [INTERVIEW]
- 4 Ways to Find Legal Music for Your YouTube Videos
- Zen and the Art of Twitter: 4 Tips for Productive Tweeting
- 5 Big Twitter Trends to Follow Right Now
- 4 Tips for Tapping Into Twitter Conversations
- HOW TO: Spring Clean Your Twitter Account
- 5 Free Services for Pre-Scheduling Your Twitter Updates
- How Twitter’s New Media Blog Aims To Teach By Example
- HOW TO: Make the Most of Your Twitter Profile Page
- Why Twitter Needs to Do More to Save Trending Topics
- 5 Terrific Tools for Keeping Tabs on Twitter Trends
- HOW TO: Help New Users Stay Engaged on Twitter
- The Rise of Comedy on Twitter
- Top 20 Sites to Improve Your Twitter Experience
- The Origin of Twitter’s “Fail Whale”
- 5 Free Ways to Never Miss a Twitter @Reply
- 10 Free and Fun Twitter Bird Icons for your Website
- 5 Fab Twitter Follower Visualization Tools
- 5 Useful Tools to Track Twitter Unfollowers
- 5 Tips for Dealing with Complaints on Twitter
- 7 Cool Chrome Extensions for Twitter
- 20 Cool Twitter Accounts for Daily Fun and Inspiration [PICS]
- TwitPic Founder Talks About the Future of Twitter Photo Sharing [VIDEO]
- Top 10 Twitter Tips for Bands, By Bands
- The New Twitter: The Web is Back
- How NPR Is Leveraging the Twitter Generation [STATS]
- Why Twitter Influences Cross-Cultural Engagement
- HOW TO: Gain Twitter Influence
- HOW TO: Use Twitter’s Advanced Search [VIDEO]
- The History of Location Technology [INFOGRAPHIC]
- Dear Foursquare: This Is Not the Right Time to Sell
- Gowalla CEO Talks About the Future of Social Media [INTERVIEW]
- Why the Fashion Industry Loves Foursquare
- Why Hasn’t Location Reached the Mainstream Yet?
- Beyond the Checkin: Where Location-Based Social Networks Should Go Next
- Top 16 Unusual Foursquare Badges
- Why Entertainment Will Drive the Next Checkin Craze
- Why Location-Based Social Media Needs to Get “Passive” Aggressive
- The State of the GeoSocial Universe [INFOGRAPHIC]
- Mayor Wars: A Battle For Foursquare Supremacy [VIDEO]
- Social Media Grammar: The “Checkin” Conundrum
- HOW TO: Become a Foursquare Power User
- A Glimpse at the Future of Foursquare
- 3 Ways Educators Are Embracing Social Technology
- How Twitter in the Classroom is Boosting Student Engagement
- 4 Tips for Integrating Social Media Into the Classroom
- Why Online Education Needs to Get Social
- The Case for Social Media in Schools
- 7 Fantastic Free Social Media Tools for Teachers
- How Online Classrooms Are Helping Haiti Rebuild Its Education System
- 10 Free Online Resources for Science Teachers
- HOW TO: Erase Your Online Past [HUMOR]
- Privacy: Managing the New Currency of the Social Web
- Why Banning Social Media Often Backfires
- HOW TO: Prevent and Report Online Stalking
- Social Media Parenting: Raising the Digital Generation
- HOW TO: Get Notified When Someone Hacks Your Facebook
- 5 Essential Facebook Privacy Tips
- HOW TO: Deal with a Cyberstalker
- 5 Fun and Safe Social Networks for Children
- 4 Effective Tools for Monitoring Your Child’s Online Safety
- New Digg Is Live: What It Means For Digg and For You
- A Brief History of Digg
- What Digg Must Do to Survive
- HOW TO: Crowdsource Funds for Causes, Creativity and Startups
- 5 Creative Uses for Crowdsourcing
- 10 Cool Crowdsourced Music Video Projects
- 4 Real Challenges to Crowdsourcing for Social Good
- 4 People Who Let the Crowd Control Their Destiny
- 5 Ways Mega Charity Events Can Harness the Power of Social Media
- 9 Ways to Do Good With 5 Minutes or $25
- How Social Media Can Effect Real Social and Governmental Change
- 4 Ways One Non-Profit Uses Location to Increase Engagement
- 5 Ways to Support World Malaria Day Online
- How Non-Profits are Using Social Media for Real Results
- How Does Twitter’s New Social Good Initiative Stack Up?
- 5 Ways Government Works Better With Social Media
- 8 Tips for a Successful Social Media Cause Campaign
- HOW TO: Turn Slacktivists into Activists with Social Media
- How the U.S. Engages the World with Social Media
- How Social Media is Changing Government Agencies
- 5 Things the Library of Congress is Archiving Online
- 6 Websites for Remembering and Honoring Veterans
- How Political Campaigns Are Using Social Media for Real Results
- How Social Media is Helping Veterans Connect
- How the Gulf Coast Benefit is Using Social Media to Rally Support
- How Social Media is Changing the Way Government Does Business
- How You Can Do Good with Small Actions: Try Bolder
- How CrisisCommons Is Helping the Tech Community Help Others
- 5 Social Fundraising Alternatives to Facebook Causes
- Why Social Media Is a Game-Changer for Causes
- How the Web Can be Harnessed for Social Good
- How Social Media Helped 174 Million People Get the Message About Malaria
- 5 Easy Ways to Support a Cause Through Your Social Network
- Social Media: The New Battleground for Politics
- 3 Small Cause Campaigns That Won Big With Social Media
- How and Why PepsiCo Engages in Social Good [VIDEO]
- 9 Creative Social Good Campaigns Worth Recognizing [Mashable Awards]
- 5 YouTube Projects That Are Making a Difference
- Why Social Media Is Reinventing Activism
- 3 Creative Social Good Campaigns that Will Make You Smile
- HOW TO: Help Solve the Global Water Crisis with Social Media
- The Future of Social Media and Politics
- 5 Must-Follow Non-Profits Making a Difference With Social Media [Mashable Awards]
- 10 Inspiring “Buy One Give One” Projects
- How Social Media Is Making Veteran Service Organizations Better
- Checkins for Charity: The Rise of Geo-Social Good
- HOW TO: Help Feed the Hungry With Online Donations
- Facebook Co-Founder Launches Social Network for Social Good, Jumo [IMAGE]
- 5 Ways Cities Are Using Social Media to Reverse Economic Downturn
- The Holiday Survival Guide for Social Media Professionals
- 10 Fabulous Valentine’s Day Gifts for Your Beloved Geek
- 5 More Ways to Go Green for Earth Day
- How Social Media Helped Travelers During the Iceland Volcano Eruption
- 5 Ways to Go Green for Earth Day with Social Media
- 4 Social Media Efforts to Aid the Gulf Coast
- 8 Ways to Follow Internet Week New York Online
- HOW TO: Follow the 2010 World Cup on Twitter
- The World Cup’s Social Media Evolution
- World Cup 2010: Mashable’s Complete Coverage
- HOW TO: Follow the US Open with Social Media
- HOW TO: Follow New York Fashion Week Online
- HOW TO: Get the Most from Fashion’s Night Out with Social Media
- How Social Media Has Changed Fashion Week
- 17 Web Resources to Help You Decide on Election Day
- How the “Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear” Nailed Social Media
- 5 Free Halloween Music Playlists for Your Monster Bash
- 4 Ways to Visualize Voter Sentiment for the Midterm Elections
- HOW TO: Plan the Perfect Thanksgiving With the Help of Social Media
- HOW TO: Use Social Media to Enhance Your Event
- 4 Essential Traits for Social Media Success in Your Career
- 4 Steps for Managing Social Media Attention
- 5 Simple Social Design Tips From the Masters
- 3 Tips for Managing Your Online Reputation
- 5 Tips for Creating the Perfect Profile Pic
- 5 Ways to Reduce Social Media Distractions and Be More Productive
- Tim Ferriss: 7 Great Principles for Dealing with Haters
- 21 Rules for Social Media Engagement
- HOW TO: Send Digital Invites Without Being Obnoxious
- Are You a Comments Troll?
- 5 Ways to Clean Up Your Social Media Identity
- HOW TO: Deal with a Real-Life Breakup Online
- HOW TO: Enhance Your Online Presence with Video
- 11 Free Services for Scheduling Social Media Updates
- HOW TO/NOT TO: Ask Someone Out Online
- 7 Services to Find and Reserve Your Name Across the Web
- HOW TO: Gracefully Promote Yourself Online
- HOW TO: Win the Search Rank Race for Your Name
- 7 Resources for Handling Digital Life After Death
- 11 Essential Apps for Managing Your Real Life Social Networks
- HOW TO: Integrate Google Buzz Into Your WordPress Blog
- HOW TO: Create a Successful Company Blog
- 10 Beautiful Free Blogger Templates
- HOW TO: Maximize Your Content’s Reach on the Social Web
- HOW TO: Rescue Your Blog From Social Isolation
- A Look Back at the Last 5 Years in Blogging
- A Brief History of 9 Popular Blogging Platforms
- 7 Perfect Posterous Themes for Multimedia Blogs
- HOW TO: Use Tweet Buttons as a Blogger or Site Owner
- 21 Creative Blogger Bio Pages
- HOW TO: Help Your Child Set Up a Blog
- HOW TO: Integrate Facebook, Twitter and Buzz into Your Gmail
- HOW TO: Make a Google Buzz Desktop App
- 4 Ways Non-Profits Can Use Google Buzz
- 12 Fresh Web Tools for Getting the Most Out of Google Buzz
- Google’s Long History of Social Media Attempts [INFOGRAPHIC]
- Why Google Wave’s Demise Is Good News for Facebook
- Which Words Does Google Instant Blacklist?
- How the Fashion Industry is Embracing Social Media
- How the Resort Industry is Using Social Media
- How Musicians Are Using Social Media to Connect with Fans
- 6 Ways Law Enforcement Uses Social Media to Fight Crime
- The Future Newsroom: Lean, Open and Social Media-Savvy
- 6 Ways Brands are Using Social Media For Real-World Action
- How Journalists are Using Social Media for Real Results
- How Freelancers are Using Social Media for Real Results
- Social Enterprise: 5 Tips for Getting Execs on Board
- How Lawyers Are Using Social Media for Real Results
- Why Social Media is the New Source of Hollywood Talent
- How Salespeople Are Using Social Media for Real Results
- Why Food Bloggers Are Here to Stay
- 6 Crucial Social Media Tips for Traditional Media
- 5 Tips for Aspiring Social Media Marketers
- Why WikiLeaks and the Mainstream Media Still Need Each Other
- How Freelancers Might Use Social Media in the Future
- The Future of Public Relations and Social Media
- How Social Data Built a Better Health Care App
- The Future of Social Media in Journalism
- The Future of the Hotel Industry and Social Media
- How Lawyers May Use Social Media in the Future
- The Future of Human Resources and Social Media
- How Investigative Journalism Is Prospering in the Age of Social Media
- How Social Media Is Changing the Way Movies are Promoted
- Why More Health Experts Are Embracing the Social Web
- Sports and Social Media: Why the Best Is Yet to Come
- The Birth of the Virtual Assistant
- The Ultimate March Madness Social Media Guide
- 5 Stellar Ways to Explore Space Using Social Media
- 6 Easy Ways to Score the Best Deals with Social Media
- 5 Free Ways to Identify that Song Stuck in Your Head
- Why Chatroulette Is More Than Just Penises
- 3 Ways Live Events Improve Online Communities
- 12 Chatroulette Clones You Should Try
- Top 10 Online Mascots
- HOW TO: Rent Anything Online
- HOW TO: Get the Most Out of Q&A Sites
- 13 Internet Slangs with Unexpected Alternate Meanings
- 5 Ways Social Media Helps Promote Good Health
- For Women, Social Media is More Than “Girl Talk”
- Inside Street Food’s Social Media Revolution [VIDEO]
- 10 Great Geek Tees For Kids
- 7 Days on Craigslist’s Casual Encounters
- HOW TO: Follow Mashable Staff Online
- The WikiLeaks Debate: Journalists Weigh In
- 7 Services That Will Suggest Things You Like
- 7 Questions With AOL Co-Founder Steve Case
- 5 Online Community Killers to Avoid at All Costs
Videos and Pics
Music
Geo-location
Education
Privacy and Safety
Digg
Crowdsourcing
Social Good, Activism and Government
Holidays & Major Events
Managing Your Social Media Time & Presence
Blogging
Industry-Specific Resources
Other
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