More teens have cell phones and most of them text on a regular basis. What and who are they texting?
- 37% of young people said they have sent a naked picture of themselves
- 24% said their naked picture was shared without their consent
- Girls were twice as likely to send a naked photo than boys
- 49% said they believed sexting was just a bit of harmless fun
- 16% said it was “the normal thing to do”
The study was done by a British anti-bullying charity, Ditch the Label. They found that sexting has a serious negative impact on teens. This isn’t just a problem in the UK. The US is coming to terms with teen sexting as well. The Federal Government says that anyone sending or receiving photos of a naked child (usually anyone under 18 is considered a child) is breaking the law. It is a felony and can result in fines and prison time.
“I think we as a culture don’t know whether to be utterly alarmed by sexting, or think of it as a normal part of teenage sexual experimentation,” Hanna Rosin tells NPR. Rosin has an article, “Why Kids Sext,” coming out in the November Issue of The Atlantic.
She answers the questions: why are so many teenagers sending each other nude photos? How much does teen sexting have to do with actual sex? How should parents, and communities, respond? And how do child pornography laws apply?
One of the most shocking discoveries she made was what boys think of these naked pictures of girls. The girls told her that guys collect the pictures like they are collecting Pokemon cards or baseball cards. Girls don’t think the boys take the pictures seriously and they aren’t a part of their sex life. Rosin describes is as social currency.
Is this just kids being kids? How do we teach our children that sexting and sending nude photos could mess up their lives?
