Sexting -- Your Kids May Be Doing It

According to a recent study, about one in five teenagers have electronically distributed provocative pictures of themselves that could land them in jail. A joint survey by Cosmogirl.com and The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy found that 19% of teenagers answered "yes" when asked if they had ever "sent a nude or semi-nude picture/video" of themselves to someone via email, cell phone, etc.

And according to CBS legal analyst, attorney Lisa Bloom, "There are local prosecutors who will arrest you, lock you up, and treat you like a child pornographer." And being under-age doesn't protect them. "It is still child pornography," explained Bloom. "You don't have to be 18 to possess or distribute child pornography."

"Sexting" describes the growing trend of sending sexually explicit messages (text, pictures, or video) electronically, mostly via cell phones. The most common reason teenagers give for sending sexy content is to be "fun or flirtatious," what Bloom described to me as "the digital equivalent of what our generation did - mooning and flashing each other." Unfortunately, many don't understand the possible consequences. We live at a time when a moment's poor judgment can go viral. In Pennsylvania, six teens were charged with child pornography after three girls sent pictures of themselves to three male classmates. Similar events have unfolded in Ohio and elsewhere.

And sometimes flirtation is not the motive. In Florida, an 18-year-old male sent naked pictures of his 16-year-old girlfriend to dozens of her friends and family after an argument; he was arrested, charged with child pornography, sentenced to five years probation, and required to register as a sex offender.

Last year, the ex-boyfriend of an 18-year-old girl in Ohio forwarded nude pictures of her to hundreds of her high school classmates. She was humiliated and ended up hanging herself.

As the father of 13 and 17-year-old sons, I find myself wondering about the increasing blurring of private and public. Some kids have the misconception that electronic communication is always private. Others don't care; they've grown up in a voyeuristic world and think it's no big deal if others know intimate details of their lives. In fact, that may even be a goal. You can become famous if you're willing to let the cameras roll. Contestants of the reality show Big Brother allow viewers to watch them online 24-7 - everywhere except (for now) the bathrooms.

The answer is not to blame kids, thinking "Why can't they be like we were, perfect in every way?" Children (and I was no exception) have always been impulsive and had poor judgment. That's where parents come in. My job is to keep my eyes open, communicate with my sons (that means listen as well as talk), and - in a nonthreatening and loving way - try to set them straight when they aren't thinking right. When I discussed sexting with Bill Alpert, Chief Program Office of the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, he told me, "I don't think that parents need to overreact. They just need to realize this is going on."

Alpert said decades of social science research have shown that parents underestimate their own importance in their children's lives. He noted that when asked about the key influences on their kids, parents usually say "number one is friends, number two is media, and they are number three; but teenagers themselves - in every single survey we've done over the past 10 years - have put parents number one."

So it's the same old lesson learned by the scarecrow in the Wizard of Oz, who never did need that diploma to be smart. We parents have the power to help our children safely navigate a world that is increasingly treacherous. We just need to use it.

For this week's CBS Doc Dot Com, I discuss sexting with psychologist Susan Lipkins, Ph.D. You can find her advice about sexting by clicking here.

Watch CBS News Videos Online

Here are tips about sexting from The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy:

Parents: click here.

Teens: click here.

Comments

[Omegaomni]

Isn't it funny that teen can send picture of him abusing animals and get no jail time? A teen can send text of racism, sexism, or just raw hate, and get no jail time? but if it's a pic of their body which they own, they can get years in prison. Wake up humans, and accept your body, and tell the government to F. off

[Omegaomni]

OMG Teenagers engaging in sexual activity !!!111111 Is everyone insane or maybe we need to look at the prosecutors charging people with child pornography and making kids have to register for the unconstitutional sex offender registry?

Teen have been screwing since cave times, maybe parents shouldn't give their children camera phones?

Oh Kali! deliver us from ourselves

[Kim Stagliano - Huffpost Blogger]

I don't think this is a new trend, just the technology and ease of distribution in new. And perhaps the vicious streak kids seem to have in terms of using the photos to wound other kids.

Remember the movie Parenthood with Steve Martin? Martha Plimpton and Keanu Reeves take naked photos of each other and then the Mom accidentally picks up the print at FotoMat. Oops!

Girls have wanted to look sexy for boys for a pretty long time. And boys have liked looking at photos of sexy girls since the first cave drawing, I suspect.

I recall snapping a roll of "peekaboo" photos (not that I had much to peek at) for my boyfriend before heading off to college. More Playskool than Playboy, I admit - but still, my friend and I did take "sexy" photos to share. (Please don't tell my Mom, OK?)

[obelix1349]

Right now, theres a 16 and 17 year high school couple who were involved in this in Florida who were convicted and put on the registry (for 20+ years I believe). They appealed but it was upheld. I believe the case is progressing to a higher appeals court now.

We can all agree the teen sexting is stupid and wrong, but this is just MESSED UP.

I would like the media to expose this particular story as much as they can, name names (prosecutors, judges) and put as much pressure as possible on the legal system to take these kids off the registry.

They say the registry is about public safety. These kids are in no way a danger to the community and monitoring them takes attention away from actual real predators.

Remember the Genarlow WIlson case? Or the case of the man in Texas sentenced to life for smoking a joint while on probation? In both cases the media hammered away at the stories causing intense public outrage and pressure. Even Rick Perry folded in the second case pardoning the man, while Genarlow Wilson was also released and able to restart his life.

I would like to see the media hammer away at this case too.

[lastpost]

"I don't think that parents need to overreact. They just need to realize this is going on."

Isn’t the time to really start worrying about this, when you receive one of yourself? And you haven’t sent any out.

[ObamAtomic]

One of the Architect of the laws.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Foley_scandal

[ObamAtomic]

One of the Architect of such laws with then AG Alberto Gonzalez..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Foley_scandal

[Mr.Fitz]

Leave the kids alone. And for that matter, stop bringing them to shrinks to have them medicated because they don't act right.

[Erzsebet Gilbert]

Excellent article - American culture is increasingly infatuated with an industry of omnipresent display, and I think that so many children feel the need to self-actualize by being seen. What's more, they can feel pushed to an accelerated adulthood, a look-at-my­-sexuality­.
The dangers of actual child exploitation are minimized when one conflates it with kids being stupid and desperate and unknowing, and by prosecuting the kids themselves you forget the responsibility which parents and other adults must recognize.
It's vital that people are having a dialogue about this issue, but a dialogue has to opened up with children as well. Without making kids feel ashamed of their growing sexuality, we have to explain the perils of this behavior, and be present enough in their lives to balance privacy with a bit of protection.

[S1m0n]

If teens flirting by electronic gadget is child pornography, there is a serious problem in the law that needs to be addressed. Adults trading or perving on pictures of kids is one thing, and kids whose hormones are running away with them is another.

A conviction as a child child pornographer victimises that child in a manner far more grave than the alleged 'crime' itself. That charging and prosecuting a teen for this crime would be the work of adults (allegedly) old enough to know better, shows us all that teens have no monopoly on acting without adequate thought for the consequences. The teens behaved stupidly because they're teens. What's the law's excuse?

[sixyfivepercentwater]

"Adults trading or perving on pictures of kids is one thing, and kids whose hormones are running away with them is another." The problem is that these photos could end up anywhere, for anyone to see and use as they want to. The definition of "child pornography" has nothing to do with who originally sent the photos or the reason they sent them. The photos themselves are the pornography.

Any child who cannot use technology responsibly should have that technology taken away. This is not innocent fun, and it is not flirting. A child who does this kind of thing now will later be an adult who will do the same thing.

[S1m0n]

We're not talking about taking away technology, we're talking about a five year sentence and a life time criminal record & and inclusion on a sex offender registry - all for taking a photo of themselves and sending it to their girlfriend­/boyfriend­. That's WILDLY out of proportion, and victimises the kids far more seriously than the actual 'crime'.

And yes, there can be lots of other reasons for teens sexting, but flirting is one of the major ones.

[vernbvb]

This is a disturbing trend and one that has made sex more casual than the '60's and '70's era. I am now of the opinion that all teens should have their text messages monitored. Parents may not catch all the nude or pornographic pictures (that's right, i said pornographic), but just the knowledge that they are going to be monitored may help prevent some of the nudity texting. We all know that during adolescence, the hormones are raging. Not a lot we can do if teens decide to engage in sex or to have what they call phone sex. We can though, help prevent the immoral trend of sending pornographic images on their cells. I don't allow my grands to take phones in bathroom anymore. Parents should know they are using it for more than talking and listening to music.

If i seem to be going on and on about this, it is because i was privy to the interception of a pornographic image sent to my friend's daughter. It was clear that he was in the bathroom taking a pic of himself with a full erection. The erection in my opinion made it hardcore porn. My friend immediately erased it after we both looked at it. She didnt share with her husband or try to find out who the young man was, although i suspect she had an idea. Parents have to be responsible for teaching their kids about these illegalities because they can have serious ramifications.

[hoopesaz]

I agree. Unfortunately, I caught my 14 year old daughter twice having very explicit conversations with boys. And not boyfriends, just guys that she casually knew and rarely saw. She seemed to have learned her lesson after the first incident, but turns out she just learned how to cover her tracks better. Second time around, she lost text messaging. What's AMAZING is that she has been a different child since them...so much more pleasent to be around and so much more involved in our family.

Texting is really like a drug. It's pretty close to giving a kid a loaded gun to play with. It may not kill like a gun, but it can certainly scar them for life.

[obelix1349]

What's should be even more disturbing, is that by not reporting this, you could probably be in violation of one of these laws yourself. That's what should be more disturbing than the sexting itself is the heavy handed prosecution. We should not be criticizing Saudi Arabia and Iran before we clean up our own laws first!

[obelix1349]

This is just one of many examples of what is wrong with the sex offender registry. I thought the registry was about pedophiles who were a danger to the community, but it includes people for stupid things like not only sexting, but streaking and even public urination.

http://www.economist.com/displayStory.cfm?story_id=14164614

This example is unbelievab­le...
http://thebabybond.com/Breastfeeding%20Crime.html

[JackNasty]

Not only aer there horny teenagers on the list. There are gay men on the list who were convicted of consentual sexual relations with other adults prior to the repeal of sodomy laws.

The sex offenders list isn't about protecting the public from people who present a threat to anyone. The list is all about sex-loathing, the latter-day Puritans forcing people to wear updated scarlet letters.

[sixyfivepercentwater]

The sex offender registry is absurd, for the reasons you cite and for the very fact that these people have all served their time and deserve to have a life. I could understand them being under close scrutiny from local law enforcement, like all former offenders. But to make their crimes public is outrageous.

[dim]

Ex post facto laws are abhorrent (except things like amnesty). They are expressly banned by the constitution. The way they got around it is by saying that being forced to register is not punishment. Disgusting.

[flanardiente]

To treat a minor who sends a naked picture of himself or herself to a friend as a sex offender is like sending a teenager who's convicted of stealing a comic book out of a store to prison for five years. If the people who enforce the law don't understand this, they need to join the ranks of the unemployed. When the application of the law is seen to be absurdly punitive, people lose respect for it across the board.

[vernbvb]

Parents have to intervene. This behavior cannot be allowed and we have to treat them harshly unless we want it to escalate. Think of a teen in a locked bathroom with his cell texting to a girl in her bathroom. Suppose this escalates to both of them sending texts to each other with images of each of them masturbating. If you are concerned about minors, then get on board with those of us who want our teens to have a fun, healthy life free of unnecessary serious criminal offenses.

It is just an unhealthy thing for them to be doing in more ways than one and it will take serious parental involvement to help prevent this behavior or they may find themselves facing criminal charges.

[sixyfivepercentwater]

"It is just an unhealthy thing for them to be doing in more ways than one. . ." Excellent point. This is not a loving, caring thing to do and it has nothing to do with healthy sex either. For those reasons alone it's something kids should be severely disciplined for. At the very least their sources of communication should be taken away.

[Thabor]

There is a big difference between pornography and nudity. Let look at the other extreme as well.. How about we start arresting kids who take showers after gym class. This country is seriously bipolar when it comes to nudity. The most damaging thing about this is shame people try to heap on kids for nudity or sexuality.­.

[obelix1349]

The purpose of the registry is PUBLIC SAFETY NOT PUNISHMENT. Everyone who supports the registry says that. And by public safety I do not mean punishment for safety's sake, but informing the public that the person has dangerous sadistic compulsions.

In no way do these kids fit into that category. Period. By registering them you are taking away attention from actual predators. Just look at the Philip Garrido case.

[rbryanh]

One Nation, Under Shame.

While I very much doubt it's their motivation, I nonetheless admire these kids for assuming the moral imperative to break unjust laws. As they become more aware of what's being done to them in the name of religiously-induced hysteria and a media that's long since abandoned journalism in favor of bread and circuses, I hope young people continue to explore the options technology offers in terms of nonviolent civil disobedience.

Nudity: occasionally exalted, frequently depressing, and never significant per se.

[texasteph12570]

• have you ever found in history one single example of a nation thoroughly corrupted that was afterwards restored to virtue? And without virtue there can be no political liberty…. Will you tell me how to prevent riches from becoming the effects of temperance and industry? Will you tell me how to prevent luxury from producing effeminacy, intoxication, extravagance, vice and folly? I believe no effort in favour of virtue is lost john adams 1813
• in vain are schools, academies, and universities instituted, if loose principles and licentious habits are impressed upon children in their earliest years. The vices and examples of parents cannot be concealed from children. John adams 1778

[SonofLiberty1]

I trust that Mr. Adams is in heaven and that the sight of God is enough that what we do here on Earth doesn't matter.

Mr. Adams would be ashamed ...

[texasteph12570]

he would be ashamed of what this country has and is turning into.

[Omegaomni]

Too bad Adams didn't think anyone but white male landowners should have power. Virtue is a amorphous term used by the power elite to control.

[texasteph12570]

• That a freehold in fifty acres of land in the district… shall be necessary to qualify a man as an elector of a representative. Northwest ordinance 1787.

just a history lesson the founders were christian and therefore were not prejudiced. the 3/5ths clause refering to slaves was a compromise with the southern states as to encourage future generations to abolish the practice of slavery, as the south wanted to count the slaves as full citizens and the founders argued that until they were free they did not count as full citizens.
they only wanted people who were intelligent enough to understand what they would be voting on, and the assumption was that anyone who owned property was committed to this country , intelligent, and industrious enough to make informed decisions.
read your history. virtue is what gives people mutual respect and removes the need for government to institute laws to control you.