Freedom of Sexual Expression Under Absorptive Censorship in China
Abstract
ABSTRACT: This study develops an absorptive censorship model of Chinese law, showing how the party-state regulates sexual expression through three interrelated tiers: political pornography, commercial pornography, and peripheral sex-related content. Although distinct in emphasis, these categories function together to reassign sexual expression from a sphere of individual freedom to one of political stability, market discipline, and cultural orthodoxy. The recent Haitang case illustrates how all three tiers can converge in practice, collapsing moral and political regulation into a single elastic system that preserves legality while hollowing out constitutional protection for free expression.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Sex work and related issues
China's Socioeconomic Reforms and Governance
Publication details
- Journal / source
- Human Rights Quarterly
- Volume
- 48
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 387–412
- Publication date
- 1 August 2026
- Language
- EN