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Podcasts Take Two
Report: Economics and operations of the sex trade industry
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Mar 14, 2014
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Report: Economics and operations of the sex trade industry
A new study commissioned by the Justice Department looks at the operations and economics of commercial sex in eight different cities, including San Diego.
A female police officer poses as a prostitute on Holt Boulevard in Pomona, CA.
A female police officer poses as a prostitute on Holt Boulevard in Pomona, CA.
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David McNew/Getty Images
)

A new study commissioned by the Justice Department looks at the operations and economics of commercial sex in eight different cities, including San Diego.

Trading sexual services for money is a huge industry in this country. But due to the illegal nature of sex for hire, it's hard to get an exact sense of how much money is generated or how sex businesses are run.

A new study commissioned by the Justice Department looks at the operations and economics of commercial sex in eight different cities, including San Diego. Researchers interviewed convicted pimps and police officers on the trade.

Take Two spoke with Meredith Dank, a Senior Research Associate with the Urban Institute and lead author on the report, the Hustle: Economics of the Underground Commercial Sex Industry to talk more about this industry.

We also checked in with Ami Carpenter, who studies how gangs and prostitutes interact in the border town of San Diego, to find out what the situation is like there.