Posted on 12/10/2008 11:26:19 AM PST by Fractal Trader
The high school in Salem, N.H., was abuzz last month as a photograph of a topless 15-year-old girl was sent from cellphone to cellphone.
School staff intervened, and by the time they met with students in assemblies the next day they had discovered another compromising cellphone photo, this one of an eighth-grade girl. They soon found two more photos of naked or nearly naked girls on students' phones. Two weeks later, a similar incident occurred at nearby Sanborn Regional High School. The photograph in question was of a teenage boy.
A report being released today shows that these were not isolated incidents but part of a national trend. One-fifth of teenagers surveyed have sent or posted nude or seminude pictures or videos of themselves, usually to a boyfriend or girlfriend, and almost a third have received such images, according to "Sex and Tech," a new study by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unwanted Pregnancy and CosmoGirl.com.
Among young adults (ages 20-26), the numbers are higher: One-third said they have posted or sent racy images of themselves, and almost half have received them. TRU, a company that specializes in youth research, conducted the survey online with 1,280 teenagers and young adults selected from its database of research participants.
A spokesman for the National Campaign, a nonprofit group that advocates for sex education and access to contraceptives, said he is concerned about the link between what happens online and what happens in real life.
"What young people report is that this sort of online behavior contributes to a casual hookup culture," said Bill Albert, the group's chief program officer. "The overwhelming majority of teens and young adults don't do this, but when you get numbers like 20 percent and higher for young adults, that passes the threshhold of concern."
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
I have no idea.
Possession of any pictures of nude children is a felony. The fact that they are juveniles does not play any role in determining guilt, though it might affect the punishment. But, remember, many teens have become convicted felons for their dealings with marijuana.
Of course, I know the school. About two weeks ago, a student in Diana was caught texting during a test. They took up a lot of phones - just from the 6th graders.
Yes........When my daughter, now 22, was 16 and wanted a cell phone, she asked for "Text Messaging" at the phone store. I said why? None of your friends can read, can they? I thought the clerk was going to fall on the floor he was laffing so hard........
Are you at it again?
I am surprised (ok, not really) the technology 6ths graders have at this so called ‘highest poverty’ school in the area. Of course, I think there is a lot of number fudging or ‘unreported’ income with many of them. Last night we had a choir dress rehearsal and you wouldn’t believe the number of these kids in poverty(sic) being picked up in Escalades or 300s with tens of thousands of dollars worth of stereo equipment and rims.
You can't see some type of natural or person-made emergency that might necessitate the ability of your child to be able to contact you (or the authorities) by cell phone from school? I can think of several scenarios where I want my son to have access to his cell phone at school -- even though it must be turned off and kept out of sight during instructional periods.
Owlie, you soooo baaaaaaaaaad. You gonna gets a whuppin! :)
My grandsons went to Denmark this summer. The oldest came back with a comment of the obesity 'epidemic' in our country.
LOL!
I meant today. Thats six years ago.
You’re TERRIBLE!....................., That being said, let me know if you find that link.......
That’s funny. Good for you.
I always look for the angel tree requests where the kids want books or educational things like leap frogs.
i agree, my 14 and 17 yos both have cellphones at school which have never been a problem. if your kid is trustworthy, having a cellphone will not matter one way or the other. if they aren’t, they are going to get into trouble, cellphone or not. Freepers are the first ones to scream about guns and SUVs being blamed for things, yet one can hear them screaming about cellphones causing shenanigans. SHENANIGANS will happen, if the flesh is willing, irrespective of technology.
It is.
My question had more to do with the scenario where some (say) 14 yo girl takes nude pics of herself and distributes them. Say some kid receives said pictures and reports the fact.
The question is: can you deal with the 14 yo girl in the same way you would if it were an adult who took/posted the pictures?
And if you have kids who receive the pics and did not report them -- would you prosecute them to the same level as if it were an adult in posession?
None of this is an attempt to excuse this sort of behavior -- which is symptomatic of cultural decay (abetted by technological advancement). It's more to point out the legal ambiguity of what's going on.
If you don’t want the camera, then take a nail to the lens and start scratching. Paint might be enough if they don’t try to scratch it off.
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