Sin in New York City

From an essay subtitled “Pornography and prohibition in 19th century New York:”

There were also innovative “flash weeklies,” racy tabloids with titles such as The Libertine of New York that publicized the location of brothels and the services offered within, sometimes under the pretense of investigative journalism. The Weekly Rake reported of a prostitute named Maria who “was decked in all the finery the dry goods and jewelry stories of this city can afford. Her residence is Green Street and she has, (we have her word for it) only three gentlemen visitors. She is a very fine looking woman of 30, about the middle size.”

The editors and publishers of the flash weeklies also routinely blackmailed prominent men who frequented the dens of iniquity, threatening johns with exposure of the worst sort (that’s a revenue stream the embattled newspaper industry might think about reviving). Sometimes the victims fought back in court. A stockbroker dubbed “Big Levy” pressed libel charges after being called a “practical amalgamationist” due to his alleged predilection for African-American prostitutes.

Reason, Nick Gillespie : Sex and the City