OFCOM has confirmed Channel 5’s documentary The Sex Business has been found to have breached broadcasting guidelines.
The show was made up of three episodes titled Pain For Pleasure, Trans On Demand and Orgasms For Sale, which documented the lives of sex workers working in specific areas of the industry.
However, despite a strong warning to viewers and its 10pm timeslot, Ofcom has ruled that the show was in breach of two of its guidelines.
An Ofcom spokesperson said: “Our investigation found these programmes broke our rules by including images of extreme, graphic sexual activity.
“These were far more explicit than viewers would be likely to expect in a programme broadcast an hour after the watershed.”
The programme featured interviews with sex workers and “images of strong, extreme and graphic sexual activity”.
Ofcom revealed there was “insufficient masking” and close-up shots that resulted in “sexual material that was extreme, graphic, prolonged at times and prominent”.
It cited data showing how many children may have been watching, with 30,500 aged between four and 15 for the second episode.
The programme breached rules on post-watershed explicit sexual content and offence.
A Channel 5 spokesman said: “The Sex Business is a programme of public interest, offering a unique insight into an industry employing around 100,000 people in the UK.
“We note that Ofcom considered this was a serious observational documentary and that the inclusion of sexual content clearly supported the editorial purpose, presenting the lives and experiences of the workers featured in the series.
“Although there were very clear warnings as to the explicit nature of the content both before the programme and every break part, we acknowledge the findings from Ofcom and will reflect on the decision before repeating any of the episodes in question.”
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