Celebrities
Matthew Champion
Jan 06, 2015
The news that a Lebanese-American woman had become one of the most popular porn stars in the world has sparked a mixed reaction in her country of birth.
Last week Mia Khalifa overtook the retired Lisa Ann as the most searched for adult actress on the PornHub website.
Although the 21-year-old now lives in Miami, Florida, she was born in Lebanon and has a tattoo featuring the first verse of the country's national anthem.
She has spent the last few days replying to social media posts that she is bringing shame to Lebanon, a mostly-Muslim country of around 5million people.
Writing for Now Lebanon, Juliana Yazbeck said: "It never even crossed my mind to think, 'she doesn't have the right'. What did cross my mind was: "'Really? Of the very few Lebanese women who are making global headlines, it had to be a porn star?'."
But Gino Raidy, a blogger, said Mia's success was a cause for celebration.
"I don't really care what any of you think about her career choice, after all, it's her body to do whatever she wants with," he wrote.
And in a Facebook post, British-Lebanese author Nasri Atallah said: "For the record, I don't think we should be particularly proud of Mia Khalifa, we should just be indifferent. She's doing a job she chose, in a regulated industry, no different to banking."
More: [It’s not just porn. Here are other things quietly censored in Britain]4
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