Jim Liebelt's Youth Culture Watch

Sexting Numbers Among Teens Lower Than Thought

Teen sexting is a real problem, but not the pervasive scourge some reports have suggested, according to the first detailed national study on youths who share sexual images on phones and the Internet.

Just 2.5% of kids ages 10 to 17 admit to creating or appearing in such photos or videos, and even fewer produce images that amount to pornography, says the study, published today in Pediatrics.

"Many of these are very benign pictures" — of kids who might strike a sexual pose, but who remain clothed, often wearing bathing suits or underwear, says lead author Kimberly Mitchell, a researcher at the Crimes Against Children Research Center at the University of New Hampshire.

Parents might worry about those photos, but should know that there's no epidemic of teens "unwittingly producing child pornography," co-author Janis Wolak says.

Researchers conducted phone interviews with 1,560 youths nationwide and asked about exchanges of "nude or nearly nude" images of minors in the past year. They found:

•1.8% created such images of themselves; just five kids (0.3%) said they appeared in someone else's photos; and six (0.4%) said they photographed someone else.

•1.3% said they appeared in or created images that showed naked breasts, genitals or bottoms.

•7% said that they have received such images.

"If their findings are true and the extent of this is less than previous studies have shown, it's a very good thing," says Bill Albert, chief program officer at the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy.

Source: USA Today
http://yourlife.usatoday.com/parenting-family/teen-ya/story/2011-12-04/Sexting-numbers-among-teens-lower-than-thought/51643910/1

Teen Sexting Common, Linked to Psychological Woes

A study of more than 23,000 high school students finds 13 percent have received a sext message and 10 percent have either forwarded, sent or posted sexually suggestive, explicit or nude photos or videos by cellphone or online.

The study was presented at the American Public Health Association's annual meeting in Washington, D.C.

Sexting can include overtones of bullying and coercion, and teens who are involved were more likely to report being psychologically distressed, depressed or even suicidal, according to the 2010 survey of 24 (of 26) high schools in Boston's metro-west region.

Twice as many respondents who said they had sexted in the past year reported depressive symptoms, compared to teens who did not. Moreover, 13 percent of teen involved in sexting reported a suicide attempt during that period compared with 3 percent of non-sexting teens, according to the researchers at the Education Development Center in Newton, Mass.

That doesn't mean that sexting leads to depression or increases suicide risk. "It's a cross-sectional study -- it shows an association but not a causal relationship," explained lead researcher Shari Kessel Schneider.

However, she added, "It's important to know there's a link between sexting and psychological distress. It's something to be considered if you know of a youth who is involved in sexting."

Of the high-school students, 10 percent of boys and 11 percent of girls said they had sent one of these images in the past year, while 6 percent of males and 4 percent of females had had such an image sent of themselves.

Source: U.S. News & World Report
http://health.usnews.com/health-news/family-health/sexual-and-reproductive-health/articles/2011/11/02/teen-sexting-common-and-linked-to-psychological-woes

Four in Five College Students Sext

A recent survey from the University of Rhode Island has put some numbers on how widespread sexting is among College students. Seventy-eight percent of students in the survey say they've received sexually suggestive messages and 56% say they have received intimate images. Two thirds of the students said they sent salacious messages. Before we call a national epidemic of Weiner -itis, we should note that 73% of texts were sent to a romantic partner. Almost like a romantic old love-letter, but shorter and with more emoticons.

And, it seems, with more staying power. Almost a fifth of the people who received the racy messages then forwarded them onto somebody else. And 10% of all the explicit messages sent were relayed without permission from the original author. (Those statistics should be put on a label and stuck on cellphones everywhere.)

Source: Time
http://healthland.time.com/2011/07/25/how-many-college-kids-sext-four-out-of-five/

Focus on Sexting in New York Times

On Sunday, March 27, 2011, the New York Times published several articles on the topic of teen sexting which provide an up-to-date focus on the topic.

"A Girls' Nude Photo, and Altered Lives" describes the aftermath of a 14-year-old middle school girl whose sext to her boyfriend quickly goes viral.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/27/us/27sexting.html

"States Struggle With Minors' Sexting" addresses how states are working to define appropriate laws and consequences for teen sexting.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/27/us/27sextinglaw.html

"What They're Saying About Sexting" provides quotes from teen surveys and gives a look into what teens have to say about sexting.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/27/us/27sextingqanda.html

Source: New York Times

NJ Teens Caught Sexting Would Get Education, Not Prosecution

Some states (in this case New Jersey) continue to create laws to specifically address the issue of teen "sexting" in order to make consequences better fit the behavior. When sexting first became an issue two years ago, teens in several states were prosecuted and convicted under established felony child pornography and sex offense laws.

New Jersey juveniles caught sending sexually explicit photographs via their cell phones would not face criminal prosecution but rather intense education on the ramifications under a bill advanced by the full Assembly on Monday.

The measure, approved unanimously by a vote of 78-0, aims to curtail a practice known popularly as “sexting,” a problem that has increasingly perplexed parents, school administrators and law enforcement officials because of ambiguities in child pornography laws.  Prosecutors in several states have even charged teenagers with criminal offenses, including distribution of child pornography.

“Teens need to understand the ramifications of their actions, but they shouldn’t necessarily be treated as criminals,” said Lampitt (D-Camden). “We need to create a path that places education and forgiveness before arrest and prosecution.  Young people – especially teen girls – need to understand that sending inappropriate pictures is not only potentially illegal, but can leave an indelible mark on them socially and educationally.”

Educating young people and getting them to change their behavior must be our focus,” said Riley (D-Salem/Cumberland/Gloucester). “Those conversations need to happen between a parent and child and among peers. These measures can spark those conversations or, in the worst case, ensure that kids who do make a mistake don’t pay for it in court.”

Source: NJ.com
http://www.nj.com/gloucester-county/index.ssf/2011/03/teens_caught_sexting_would_get.html

NYC Wants Teen 'Sexting' Ban, In School And Home

Parents and schools struggle with the role technology plays in kids' lives. But a new push to keep them safe has some saying it goes too far.

New York City schools now want to punish students caught "sexting" -- no matter where they do it.

The Department of Education wants to ban both cyber bullying and sexting in New York City's public schools at all times, even outside of school hours.

The sexting proposal has drawn the opposition New York's Civil Liberties Union. 

The proposal would let a principal do anything from hold a parent conference to expel for cyber bullying.

Not only does the Department of Education want to ban sexually explicit text messaging that students may do off hours on nights, weekends and summer vacation, but they also want to punish them for it, handing out up to a 90-day suspension.

Some students said this proposal is going too far. 

Yet parents find it less of a black and white issue.

"I wouldn't want them punishing my child, but somehow if we could prevent sexting and cyber bullying and everything I would be in favor of that," said Brooklyn resident Betsy Davidson.

Source: WCBSTV
http://wcbstv.com/local/sexting.nyc.sexting.2.1760507.html

Lawmakers Backing Off Harsh Punishments for Sexting Teens

In the past year, I've posted numerous times about sexting. In fact, a year ago today, my post was "Sexting Teenagers Face Child-Porn Charges" where I commented that law enforcement needed to find ways to make the punishment fit the crime. It seemed then, as it does now, inappropriate to classify adolescents who sexted as sexual offenders and felons on equal footing with rapists and child molesters.

Today it appears that lawmakers around the country are attempting to do just this, establishing laws and punishments that address the specific nature of adolescent sexting. There's more work to be done on this, but it seems to me that the movements are in the right direction.

"Sexting" became a household word last year after four Pennsylvania teens were charged with disseminating and possessing child pornography after it was discovered that several students had exchanged nude pictures of themselves via cell phone. A federal court ruled last week that felony child pornography charges could not be pursued in this particular case, but state lawmakers around the country are looking to address the issue by making penalties better fit the "crime" for minors caught sexting.

The Illinois State Senate last week passed a bill that would limit penalties for minors that share nude or sexually explicit photos via cell phone or computer. Doing so would be classified as a misdemeanor, and minors would be sent to juvenile court for counseling and possible community service.

Connecticut lawmakers are considering similar legislation as well.

Florida is also considering legislation that would classify sexting between minors as a specific crime separate from existing child pornography statutes.

So far, 15 states have legislation on the table to address sexting in one form or another. Many states are attempting to specifically add it as a crime as part of cyberstalking or child pornography (when it includes images of minor-aged children) laws. However, several of the laws are attempting to address the issue when it comes to teens engaging in sexting. Some measures encourage adopting programs to educate teens about the dangers of sexting, while others de-criminalize the act as the Illinois, Connecticut, and Florida bills would. Similar measures were passed last year in Utah, Nebraska, and Vermont.

Source: ars tecnica
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/03/lawmakers-backing-off-harsh-punishments-for-sexting-teens.ars

New Survey on Teens and Sexting from Pew Internet

I find it entirely plausible that the number of teens that have actually sent nearly-nude, nude, or suggestive photos of themselves to others is much smaller than the percentage of teens that have received or forwarded such photos of others. Some previous surveys have lumped together both those who send and receive "sexts" in their figures, so it was good to see the differentiation in this report.

A new survey from the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project found that 4% of cell-owning teens ages 12-17 say they have sent sexually suggestive nude or nearly nude images or videos of themselves to someone else via text messaging, a practice also known as “sexting”; 15% say they have received such images of someone they know via text message.

Focus group findings show that sexting occurs most often in one of three scenarios:

1.    Exchanges of images solely between two romantic partners   
2.    Exchanges between partners that are then shared outside the relationship
3.    Exchanges between people who are not yet in a relationship, but where often one person hopes to be.

“Teens explained to us how sexually suggestive images have become a form of relationship currency,” said Amanda Lenhart, Senior Research Specialist and author of the report. “These images are shared as a part of or instead of sexual activity, or as a way of starting or maintaining a relationship with a significant other. And they are also passed along to friends for their entertainment value, as a joke or for fun.”

Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project
http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2009/Teens-and-Sexting.aspx

Sexting Results in Florida Teen's Suicide

It appears that another "sexting"-gone-bad episode has resulted in a 13-year-old Florida girl taking her own life. This would be the second known case in the U.S. where a connection has been drawn between sexting and suicide.

The circumstances not only highlights the dangers inherent with sexting, but also the role of peer bullying that emerges once sexted photos are distributed widely among students populations.

At the end of the school year at Beth Shields Middle School, the taunting became so bad that Hope Witsell's friends surrounded her between classes. They escorted her down hallways like human shields, fending off insults such as "whore" and "slut." A few days before, Hope had forwarded a nude photo of herself to a boy she liked — a practice widely known as "sexting." The image found its way to other students, who forwarded it to their friends. Soon the nude photo was circulating through cell phones at Shields Middle and Lennard High School, according to multiple students at both schools. "Tons of people talk about me behind my back and I hate it because they call me a whore!" Hope wrote in her journal. "And I can't be a whore i'm too inexperienced. So secretly TONS of people hate me … " School authorities learned of the nude photo around the end of the school year and suspended Hope for the first week of eighth grade, which started in August. About two weeks after she returned to school, a counselor observed cuts on Hope's legs and had her sign a "no-harm" contract, in which Hope agreed to tell an adult if she felt inclined to hurt herself, her family says. The next day, Hope hanged herself in her bedroom. She was 13.

Source: St. Petersburg Times
http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/sexting-related-bullying-cited-in-hillsborough-teens-suicide/1054895

Teens Sue High School That Punished Them for Racy MySpace Pics

I was waiting to see an article along these lines show up, where teenagers end up suing someone or some entity for being punished over sexting...and here it is. I'm sure it's not the first case and I'm sure it won't be the last. In this case, there's no question about what the teens did. They posted racy photos to their MySpace profiles. Those pictures ended up in the hands of their high school's principal. The principal acted in accordance with school policy and punished the girls by not allowing them to participate from fall semester extracurricular activities.

The girls (with the help of the ACLU) have now sued the school and principal claiming that their rights of expression have been violated and that their actions had no effect or impact on the school.

What do you think should happen?

I do believe that some students who have sexted or posted racy photos of themselves on their social networking profiles have been treated too harshly (through criminal prosecution.) But, it does seem reasonable to me for schools to set behavioral expectations that apply to students whether or not they are on campus. Suspension from a semester's worth of extracurricular activities does not strike me as excessive punishment either.

And what might be the result to the broader culture should students who sue win cases like this one?

Two Indiana teenagers have sued their school district after they were punished for posting suggestive photos on MySpace.

The girls, 10th-graders at Churubusco High School in Churubusco, Indiana, say they were humiliated after the school banned them from fall semester extracurricular activities and forced them to apologize to the all-male Athletics Board (composed of varsity coaches). The girls also had to attend three counseling sessions.

The American Civil Liberties Union has filed the proposed class-action suit on behalf of the girls and all present and future students at the school who participate or may participate in extracurricular activities. The ACLU argues the district violated the girls’ First Amendment rights and should not have punished them for activities conducted outside school. The suit names the girls’ high school, school district and principal.

According to the school’s student handbook, the principal “may exclude any student-athlete from representing Churubusco High School if his/her conduct in or out of school reflects discredit” upon the school or creates a “disruptive influence on the discipline, good order, moral, or educational environment” at the school.

The ACLU says the photos were meant to be a joke shared among friends and had “no effect on the school whatsoever.” The girls’ self-expression has been curbed as a result of the school’s activity, the suit alleges.

Source: Wired
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2009/11/teen-pics/