New education and police effort aims to steer NC students away from online pornography
North Carolina law enforcement and education leaders hope a new campaign will keep students from being exposed to online pornography and adult sex predators.
The State Bureau of Investigation, the state Department of Public Instruction and the nonprofit group The Third Talk have partnered on a new internet safety video telling middle school and high school students about the dangers of online pornography.
State leaders say the need for the video is more acute now that online usage has increased, especially during the coronavirus pandemic.
Students are scheduled to see the safety video in school.
“The threat to students is real and relevant given the increase in the amount of time students spend online, as well as the pervasiveness and easy accessibility of explicit online content,” said Karen Fairley, executive director of the N.C. Center for Safer Schools. “Increasing awareness of the dangers that exist can help parents and other trusted adults provide the necessary guidance students need to make wise choices.
“The Center’s strategic partnership with the SBI and The Third Talk represents our mutual desire for students to be as safe as possible while online.”
Child exploitation rises in pandemic
Both the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the SBI have reported a surge in the number of cybertips about child exploitation since the start of the pandemic. For part of the pandemic, students were taking online classes at home instead of getting in-person instruction at school.
The North Carolina Internet Crimes Against Children’s Task Force received 9,308 tips in 2020 — 88% more than the 4,930 tips received in 2019. This year’s total is on pace to rise again with the task force now receiving an average of 927 tips a month compared to an average of 411 tips a month in 2019.
Cybertips often involve adults pressuring minors to produce sexually explicit photos or videos, according to the SBI. If the predator is successful, the SBI says the images can be used to blackmail the children into meeting them for sex.
“With this new ‘normal,’ we saw more adults and more students engaging in virtual work and virtual learning, which unfortunately led to more opportunities for those who would like to victimize some of the most vulnerable in our society,” said Special Agent in Charge Kevin Roughton, who runs the NC Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
Parent’s guide for talking with kids
John Van Arnam, the founder of the The Third Talk, says he’s in discussion with DPI and SBI about producing more videos to show at schools.
To supplement the school video, Van Arnam has created a Parent’s Guide. It’s a series of short videos and a workbook giving parents tools on how to talk with their children about why they shouldn’t watch pornography. The guide costs $19.95.
In addition to the danger of meeting predators, Van Arnam says watching online pornography can have a damaging effect on the developing brains of children.
Van Arnam calls it “the third talk” because the first talk is parents discussing the birds and the bees with children and the second talk is sex education in school. He says children are too often left on their own to discover their sexuality instead of getting a “third talk.”
“Parents need to protect their children from getting their sex education from watching online pornography videos,” Van Arnam said.
More information can be found at https://www.thethirdtalk.org/.
This story was originally published October 1, 2021 at 7:30 AM.
