CANOGA PARK, Calif. – Diane Duke will leave her post as chief executive officer of adult industry trade organization Free Speech Coalition effective Jan. 1, according to an FSC statement released Monday morning.
Duke has helmed the organization since 2006. Prior to joining FSC, she served as a Planned Parenthood executive.
“After nine years at the Free Speech Coalition, it was time for me to move on,” she noted in the statement. “I am honored to have been able to represent this incredible industry and will always treasure the time I spent as CEO of the Free Speech Coalition.
“In the meantime, I will remain a resource for the industry until the transition is complete, and I have complete faith in our board of directors to continue the fight,” she added.
During Duke’s tenure, the adult entertainment industry weathered a number of battles, including Bush-era obscenity prosecutions and attempts to redefine Cal/OSHA regulations in ways designed to penalize the industry and performers. Under her leadership, FSC three times helped to defeat California’s ongoing efforts to mandate condom use on adult film sets. In 2011, after the closing of Adult Industry Medical — the industry’s go-to resource for performer health testing — Duke was instrumental in creating the Performer Availability Screening Services testing system.
Attorney and FSC board of directors chairman Jeffrey Douglas will act as interim CEO until the organization finds a replacement for Duke.
“Diane has led the adult industry during some of our most heated battles and has built a strong and ethical organization that represents performers as well as producers,” Douglas said. “We will miss Diane’s inspirational leadership, tenacity and perspective.”
