Infamous Podcast: "Did Jenna Jameson Create Our Pornified Culture?"

Released: October 30, 2025
Hosts: Vanessa Grigoriadis & Natalie Robehmed
Guest: Molly Lambert (writer and podcaster, creator of "Jenna World")

Episode Overview

This episode of Infamous takes a deep dive into the cultural significance of Jenna Jameson, arguably the most famous porn star ever, asking: To what extent did she "pornify" American mainstream culture? Reporters Vanessa Grigoriadis and Natalie Robehmed are joined by writer Molly Lambert to discuss Jenna's transformation into a brand, her role in the rise and mainstreaming of sex work, her real-life story, and her current relevance (or lack thereof) in today's internet age. The episode explores broader questions about exploitation, empowerment, and what the porn business reveals about the American psyche.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Jenna Jameson’s Cultural Ubiquity (01:19–03:25)

• Introduction to Jenna Jameson: Her look and persona were iconic in the late '90s and early 2000s—“The porn star that your parents know.”
  • Quote: “You probably remember what she looks like… just two orbs completely isolated from each other in the middle of her chest. But she was also a businesswoman.” (Natalie, 01:31)
• Mainstreaming Porn: Jenna played a pivotal role in the mainstream acceptance of porn, beginning a cultural shift that blurred the lines between adult entertainment and pop culture.
• The Current Landscape: The hosts reflect on today's “pornified culture,” where influencer culture and sexualized aesthetics pervade mainstream social media.
  • Quote: “It’s a more pornified culture than it ever was. There’s more focus on being sexy and attractive for better or worse.” (Vanessa, 01:56)

2. Inside the San Fernando Valley: The Heart of Porn (03:25–06:36)

• Molly’s Background: Growing up in the Valley, she was aware of the porn industry’s everyday presence.
  • Quote: “You’d see porn stars sometimes out in the Valley… there was a famous karaoke night with porn stars.” (Molly, 04:50)
• Why Porn Flourished There: Post-aerospace industry, the Valley's warehouses and affordable living attracted porn production.
• Legalization & Cultural Shifts: The repeal of the Hays Code in the '70s and “porno chic” era paved the way for Hollywood’s—and later, America’s—ambivalent embrace of porn.

3. Porn as Entertainment Industry Bellwether (07:59–08:53)

• Porn’s Precursor Status: The panel discusses how porn’s struggles with piracy and changing technology foreshadowed today’s entertainment industry problems.
  • Natalie: “In some ways, porn is kind of the canary in the coal mine for entertainment in general.” (08:45)
  • Molly: “Yeah, absolutely.” (08:53)

4. Jenna Jameson: From Performer to Brand (09:16–11:50)

• Transitional Figure: Jenna bridged the video, DVD, and early Internet eras. She was among the first adult performers to build a personal brand online with Club Jenna.
  • Quote: "She really understood that you could kind of promote yourself into being a name." (Molly, 09:16)
• “Girl Boss?”: Jenna as a '90s precursor to self-empowerment and third-wave feminist branding.
  • Quote: “She was sort of a girl boss, is what you’re saying.” (Natalie, 09:56)
• Backlash & Raunch Culture: Reflecting on the late ‘90s “raunch culture,” culminating in Jameson’s mainstream fame and subsequent conservative backlash post-9/11.

5. Jenna’s Origin Story and Personal Drive (13:25–19:17)

• Las Vegas Roots: Daughter of a showgirl and a mafia-cop father; childhood turbulence, including her mother’s early death.
• Early Adult Life: Stripped at Crazy Horse 2 in Vegas; quickly became ambitious and resourceful.
  • Quote: “She was always very driven and, like, knew how to get what she wanted.” (Natalie, 15:46)
• Trauma vs. Agency: The panel complicates the “tragic porn star” trope, exploring how exploitation and personal agency intersect in Jenna’s story.
  • Quote: “[Jenna] would definitely refute the idea that she was getting into porn because she was traumatized or felt exploited in porn.” (Molly, 16:43)

6. Sex Work, Agency, and American Attitudes (17:34–18:17)

• Sex Work as Labor: The conversation challenges the notion that sex work is uniquely exploitative.
  • Quote: "A good, well run porn shoot is obviously much less exploitative than like an Amazon warehouse where people have to pee in a jar." (Molly, 17:50)

7. Building the Jenna Jameson Persona and Brand (18:17–24:23)

• Strategic Career Moves: Jenna maneuvered between studios (Vivid, Wicked Pictures), negotiating contracts and leveraging “contract girl” status, akin to old Hollywood star-making.
• Breakthrough to Mainstream: Major appearances on shows like Howard Stern and confrontational mainstream interviews (22:08–23:35).
  • Memorable Moment: Montage of Stern’s crass questions, Jenna’s confident pushbacks.
    • Howard: “You were such a piece of ass… I mean, look at this.”
    • Jenna: “I make over 150.” (22:51, on earning over $150,000/year)
• Control and Image: Noted for “being in charge,” both in her performances and in the way she handled media.

8. Female Empowerment, Burnout, and the “Raunch Era” (25:25–28:50)

• Meeting Jenna: Vanessa shares her experience meeting an off-duty Jenna, who was candid about being “over” porn star life.
  • Quote: “She was just sort of like, dude, I’m just, like, dealing with life. Like, you pay me, I’ll put the show on. But not until then.” (Vanessa, 25:46)
• From Outcast to Spokesperson: Jenna’s visibility made it possible for subsequent porn stars to claim feminist identities and push for autonomy.
  • Quote: “Before Jenna, the way porn stars were portrayed in the media was just like, they’re idiots… After Jenna, it was sort of a given that porn stars were also sort of feminists.” (Molly, 27:24)

9. Ongoing Debate: Exploitation, Empowerment, and Social Consequences (28:50–34:01)

• The “Bummer” Argument: Vanessa voices ambivalence about sex work as an economic necessity in a wealthy nation.
  • Quote: "It's a bummer that you have to do this... there is part of me that still feels like it can be psychologically damaging." (Vanessa, 28:50)
• Nuance & Gray Areas: Molly argues that porn is neither inherently empowering nor degrading—it mirrors mainstream pressures and the complexities of modern self-presentation.
  • Quote: “It's not fully that it's always empowering... but it's also not always bad and you're always exploited.” (Molly, 29:39)
• Mainstreaming and Hypersexualization: The group debates if mainstreaming porn led to cultural hypersexualization or merely reflects it.

10. Jenna’s Legacy, Current Life, and the Changing Internet (34:01–36:29)

• Jenna Now: Multiple marriages, turbulent relationships, public family disputes, and erratic internet presence—currently embedded in “lesbian TikTok drama,” with politics described as “all over the place.”
  • Quote: “She seems like she’s kind of thriving on lesbian drama TikTok… Her politics are all over the place. She was into QAnon for a minute… and [just] posted about finding Jesus.” (Molly, 34:20–35:49)
• Obscurity with Gen Z: Despite her past fame, she is now largely unknown to younger generations—a sign of the internet’s fast-moving cultural cycles.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Agency vs. Victimization:
  • "Women who've been raped work in every industry on earth... there's no job where there aren't people who have tragic stories." — Molly Lambert (16:43)
• On Sexuality as Brand:
  • "She really understood that you could kind of promote yourself into being a name." — Molly Lambert (09:16)
• On the “Girlboss” Phenomenon:
  • "Everyone's gonna be a super hot woman who's in charge of everything, and there will never be any backlash to this." — Molly Lambert (09:59)
• On Porn’s Reflection of Society:
  • "Porn just reflects the culture. It's a mirror to the culture." — Molly Lambert (31:31)
• On Jenna’s Persona:
  • "She has a sort of, like, quality similar to Madonna, where it seems like she's in control." — Molly Lambert (21:21)
  • "She has this kind of like, Elvis. You know, she's staring you down... just this kind of like, 90s bad girl." — Molly Lambert (21:44)
• On the Legacy of Jenna Jameson:
  • “Jenna really was a canary in the coal mine… you could have this kind of parasocial relationship with an audience, and that could be a way for you to enrich yourself.” — Molly Lambert (33:20)
• On Modern Paradoxes:
  • “There is, simultaneously as there's this sort of performance of hypersexuality, there might not actually be an enactment of that hypersexuality.” — Natalie Robehmed (32:52)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 01:19–03:25 — Jenna’s mainstream ubiquity and cultural impact
• 03:25–06:36 — Porn’s rise in the San Fernando Valley
• 09:16–11:50 — Jenna as personal brand and “girl boss”
• 13:25–19:17 — Early life, career beginnings, and drive
• 18:17–24:23 — Strategic career moves, contract system, and media breakthrough
• 25:25–28:50 — Meeting Jenna and her influence on the next generation
• 28:50–34:01 — Debates on exploitation and empowerment
• 34:01–36:29 — Jenna’s current life, internet presence, and legacy

Tone & Episode Style

• Approachable, frank, and occasionally irreverent—the hosts combine journalistic skepticism with cultural critique, spiced with personal anecdotes and unsparing honesty.
• Molly Lambert’s commentary is nuanced and historically informed; Vanessa and Natalie ask probing, sometimes self-reflective questions.

Final Thoughts

The episode argues that Jenna Jameson didn’t singlehandedly create the “pornified” culture of today, but she was a figure at the crossroads of technological change, shifting gender politics, and the mainstreaming of sexualized self-presentation. Her story illustrates both the potential and the pitfalls of commodified sexuality, mirroring broader American anxieties and ambitions.