Youth, Pornography, and the Internet (2002) / Chapter Skim
Currently Skimming:
1. Introduction
1. Introduction
Pages 15-30
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From page 16... ...
Recognizing these ambiguities, the committee chose to use the term "sexually explicit material," which is material textual, visual, or aural that depicts sexual behavior or acts, or that exposes the reproductive organs of the human body. Sexually explicit material may be used for many purposes education, art, entertainment, science, personal sexual gratification or fantasy, and so on.
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From page 17... ...
Realizing the promise in all its richness requires that adults put these concerns into perspective and also take responsible steps to address them. The purpose of this report is to help put the risks of Internet use by children into perspective and to provide a balanced assessment of different approaches that can help parents and other responsible adults to deal constructively with the risks that children face on the Internet, using as its primary illustrative example protecting kids from inappropriate sexually explicit material on the Internet.
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From page 18... ...
2001. Internet Access in U.S.
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From page 19... ...
For children, the Internet generally eliminates many constraints of time and space encountered in the physical world and, as such, fundamentally broadens children's access to information and experiences. For example, the Internet provides convenient access to an almost unlimited and highly diverse (if usually unverified)
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From page 20... ...
Given the nature of the Internet and how children and other people use it, it is likely that most children will be exposed to some inappropriate material or experiences by virtue of their mere access to the Internet. This is certainly true if no actions are taken to prevent such exposure, but the National Research Council's Committee to Study Tools and Strategies for Protecting Kids from Pornography and Their Applicability to Other Inappropriate Internet Content concluded during its investigation that there is no set of actions that will eliminate this risk entirely.
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From page 21... ...
Sexually explicit material may be used for many purposes education, art, entertainment, science, personal sexual gratification or fantasy, and so on. From common usage, "pornography" might be seen as material that is intended to create sexual arousal or desire, and usually involving sexually explicit material.6 For expository and analytical purposes (and to prevent passages from being misinterpreted or taken out of context)
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From page 22... ...
But in addition to inappropriate sexually explicit material, there are other types of material that various parties regard as inappropriate, some of which several students and parents told the committee were more upsetting or objectionable than sexually explicit material. These include: · Hate speech and overt racism: material extolling the inherent or moral superiority or inferiority of a particular race, ethnic group, or sexual orientation; racial epithets; or religious bigotry.
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From page 23... ...
However, the broadcast of obscene, indecent, and profane language is regulated by law,l° and so sexual content has been more heavily regulated than violence on the public air waves. · Expressions of extreme nationalism or extreme political views: for example, materials from violent conspiracy theorists, and materials extolling the inherent superiority or inferiority of certain nations or national groups.
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From page 24... ...
Indeed, for these parents, the risk of predators who seek to entice children into such encounters is an especially serious danger for children compared with merely viewing inappropriate material, and the Internet creates opportunities for molesters to meet potential victims in a setting where none of the ordinary visual and location clues of the physical world apply. Table 1.1 describes differences in the nature of the child's interaction on the Internet between passive and interactive exposures to inappropriate material.
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From page 25... ...
The predator Physical as well as psychological or emotional harm Long (weeks or months) 1.4 A BROAD SPECTRUM OF OPINION AND VIEWS Parents have a long-recognized responsibility to care for their children and to raise them in a manner consistent with their own values, and they can feel that exposure to certain materials found on the Internet reduces their ability to carry out their parental responsibilities.
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From page 26... ...
In one group are those who believe that even though the Internet is a medium unlike any others, the ethical and moral codes, cultural norms, and laws that govern behavior on the Internet should be generally the same as those that govern behavior and interactions in the physical world.l6 For example, in the non-networked world, such techniques include movie ratings, special (restricted) sections of video and book stores, opaque wrappings over the covers of adult magazines, reports to law enforcement officials of suspected child pornographers by photo processing lab personnel, special hours or channels for transmission of certain types of cable TV shows, and so on.
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From page 27... ...
A second approach, rarely stated but often implicit as the motivating force behind certain policy positions, is the idea that a particular definition of objectionable namely one supported by specific advocates with a specific social agenda is appropriate for all communities. Then, there is a question about the agendas of some people who object to "pornography" and sexually explicit material.
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From page 28... ...
Chapter 2 describes the rapidly changing technological environment primarily as it relates to sexually explicit material. Chapter 3 addresses the economic dimensions of the issue.
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From page 30... ...
that addresses communities of action that must coordinate their use of different tools, strategies, and legal and regulatory approaches. Further, it recaps key findings and conclusions and shows relationships among several threads whose discussion has started in Chapter 1, and it outlines where a richer and deeper knowledge base would help to address the issue of protecting children from inappropriate material on the Internet.
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Key Terms
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