  urlLink The Australian: HIV strips Hollywood porn scene [April 20, 2004] : "HOLLYWOOD has always believed that any publicity, however sordid, is good for business. But the HIV infection that has prompted a 60-day shutdown of California's pornographic film sector has brought unwelcome attention to a $US19 billion ($25.5 billion) industry that has always fiercely protected its privacy. The porn-makers stopped production last week as soon as veteran star Darren James was found to be HIV-positive. The star of a lucrative film franchise called Mr Beaver Checks In was discovered to have been infected while filming in Rio de Janeiro when he underwent one of the mandatory medical checks the industry demands. All 14 of James's screen partners in the period before diagnosis have been quarantined and their names published, which is how Lara Roxx, an 18-year-old Canadian who has been in the business a matter of months, discovered she, too, had contracted HIV. A second list of 35 performers who worked with those who might be infected was also published. All must be checked after the 60-day HIV incubation period has elapsed before returning to work.
Until then, all filming has been halted. In an industry peopled by pseudonyms, such swift self-regulation is impressive. As Tim Connelly, publisher of trade magazine Adult Video News put it: 'You would probably be ostracised if you didn't have a test. It's a Wild West out there. That would be absolutely insane. That would be playing Russian roulette.'... " 
