An anonymous and world-famous call girl is anonymous no longer.
Belle de Jour, known for her books Secret Diary of a Call Girl, is actually a British specialist in developmental neurotoxicology and cancer epidemiology.
Dr Brooke Magnanti whisked off the veil this week, a decision sparking a torrential downpour of news articles about this previously secretive prostitute.
Belle de Jour’s exploitations gave her fame after she blogged about working as an escort in London during a period of financial hardship. Her blog later became the basis for a book, and then a Showtime series adapted the book.
Magnanti, 34, admitted on her blog: “It feels so much better on this side. Not to have to tell lies, hide things from the people I care about. To be able to defend what my experience of sex work is like to all the sceptics and doubters.”
To the critics, the big reveal might be coming at an opportune time for Magnanti. After all, the Call Girl brand has waned since its fevered debut in 2008, and does the average person know who Belle de Jour is? By unmasking her identity, Magnanti pulled a classic PR stunt – get people talking about you by revealing some new info about yourself.
By laying claim to her call girl lifestyle, Magnanti can now talk sex worker rights with new legitimacy. She can call on her academic community to rally behind prostitution laws that don’t make sense, like right here in Canada. She can reach out to parts of the world where sex work is more dangerous than slinging drugs.
Or she can write another book and get rich. Again. Let’s not underestimate the lure of greed.[rssbreak]
