Actor Ashton Kutcher criticized via Twitter the Village Voice for its sex trafficking news story claiming Kutcher’s estimated number of “child sex slaves” is wrong. Kutcher and his wife, Demi Moore, run non-profit foundation called the DNA Foundation to “raise awareness about child sex slavery.”
The Village Voice published a lengthy article arguing Kutcher’s April 2011 claims on CNN that there are “between 100,000 and 300,000 child sex slaves in the United States today” is inaccurate. According to the Voice, that statistic has been used in Congress and news outlets like the New York Times, USA Today, and Salon. The Voice cited “Law enforcement records” which indicate 827 arrests a year for child prostitution in the U.S.
The statistic of 100,000 to 300,000 originated from two college professors who estimated “the number of children” found to be “at risk,” The Village Voice explained.
The Voice defended itself against Kutcher’s tweeted claims via Twitter and in a blog post, again alleging that Kutcher’s statistic is “a lie.”
But, his tweets appear to have resulted in American Airlines pulling advertising from the Voice, Hollywood Reporter reported. Kutcher also appealed to Disney and Domino’s Pizza regarding their advertising in the Voice.