...the message, "Report it. Don't share it." The "it" in this public awareness campaign Facebook just launched is child sexual abuse material (CSAM), the accurate term for what is typically called "child pornography" in the United States. Thankfully, it's extremely unlikely you'll ever see content like this. "The prevalence of this content on our platform is very low," Facebook researchers … [Read more...] about If anything needs to go viral, it’s this…
sexual exploitation
Virginia teen sexting case: (Somewhat) reduced injustice
It was a picture-perfect example of how a law intended to protect children can be used to victimize them. But the juvenile judge didn't comment on the perversion of justice – or the prosecution's victimization of a teenager by ordering police to photograph the boy's genitals and threatening even more abusive treatment. He just eased the punishment meted out to the boy (his girlfriend was not … [Read more...] about Virginia teen sexting case: (Somewhat) reduced injustice
Textbook case of what NOT to do in teen sexting cases
The Washington Post has done some important reporting on a teen sexting case in Virginia, spotlighting what could (should) go down in history as a textbook example of how police can abuse rather than enforce child pornography law in the digital age. A 17-year-old boy "is facing felony counts of manufacturing and distributing child pornography," the Post reported. I'll let you read the Post … [Read more...] about Textbook case of what NOT to do in teen sexting cases
For better child-sexual-exploitation prevention
Child sexual exploitation has long been part of the Internet safety discussion, so here's a tip for good prevention online and offline: We need to talk with and listen to our children using correct language that's free of cultural taboos – and keep the communication channels wide-open. "Child-sexual-abuse educators believe teaching and confidently using universally applicable anatomical terms is … [Read more...] about For better child-sexual-exploitation prevention
Real justice for child sex abuse victims
Amid all the coverage of former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky's sentence this week, David Finkelhor, who has been doing research about child sexual victimization for more than 30 years, offered some recommendations for what will go much farther toward reducing victimization – and restoring justice – than putting one monstrous offender away for a long time. In a CNN commentary, … [Read more...] about Real justice for child sex abuse victims