Duke porn star reveals herself

A US university student who has become a porn star to fund her education has revealed her face and stage name.

The performer known as Belle Knox has defended her decision to enter the adult film industry in an article on XOJane.com.

"My name is Belle Knox, and I wear my Scarlet Letter with pride," she wrote.

The entertainer said she had not planned to make the announcement at this stage of her career but was forced into the decision after she was "harassed".

"Today, I'm going to officially reveal what my porn name is -- outside of the dregs of the Internet trying to bully me into using my birth name for porn, on message boards where comments like 'Her nose is bigger that her t---' or 'She deserves to be raped' are the common parlance -- and that is my choice to make," she wrote.

The student who was previously known as the Duke porn star, after the Duke University she attends in North Carolina, said online bullies had accused her of bringing shame on the prestigious college.

Knox said she told police but was "immediately barraged with a line of insensitive, doubting questions".

The first-year student said her job in porn was exposed after a male student spotted her in a film.

She has defended her decision to fund her studies, which cost up to US$60,000 ($66,800) a year, through porn saying she is flown to all her shoots and all expenses are included.

Female porn stars can earn up to US$80,000 a year from porn if they shoot one scene a week, according to a study.

Source: New York Daily News

Author: Martin Zavan, Approving editor: Simon Black