The development of the Internet can be considered one of the most prominent new media technologies brought to life in recent years. One of the biggest things to come from the internet, both economically and in terms of social impact has been the boom of the online porn industry. Sex sells, and nowhere better than online. The growth of the internet has nurtured online porn into an enormous multi-billion dollar industry. Access to online pornography is easier than ever. Porn is responsible for 12% of websites, over 8% of emails, 25% of search engine requests and 35% of peer-to-peer downloads. A key issue in the topic of online censorship looks at the avenues through which minors gain access to such a vast array of online pornographic content.
School aged children are increasingly finding the ability to connect to the internet. It is believed that there are approximately half a billion internet connections in homes around the world, coupled with a growing presence in schools and various other avenues, connecting to the internet has never been easier. The most common way to connect to the internet is through a PC however many other ways are being developed such as; Handheld organizers, [Pornography_And_Internet_Technologies-Mobile_Phones | mobile phones]] with web access, public kiosks, and through game consoles such as Microsoft’s ‘X-box’.
As Thornburch and Lin (2002) highlight, “it is easy to find graphically depicted acts of heterosexual and homosexual intercourse (including penetration), fellatio, cunnilingus, masturbation, bestiality, child pornography, sadomasochism, bondage, rape, incest, and so on.� The ease of how such content can find its way onto children’s computer screens has been the topic of much debate, giving rise to public concern over the issue. Especially as pornography found online is generally more extreme than that found through non-internet media. Pornographic content can be accessed by minors either deliberately, where the person actively seeks to gain access through use of search engines, or inadvertently, where exposure occurs through spam mail or pop-up windows. Although filtering technology is available to monitor and censor childrens websurfing such as 'NetNany', these are eaisly overridden. In fact research has been found that the largest consumer of internet pornography is the 12-17 year age group. Academics such as Jerome et al. have dubbed the kids of today the "Cyberporn Generation".
According to Family Safe Media (2003) 90% of 8-16 year olds have viewed porn online, most while doing homework, and 80% of 15-17 year olds have had multiple hard-core exposures. Thornburch and Lin (2002) state, that it is generally perceived to be larger commercial sites as the more prominent purveyors of illicit material, however in a survey conducted by Orr and Ferringo-Stack (2001) of adult-oriented sites revealed that they are not alone. The survey found that 74% of pornographic websites displayed adult on content on their first page (which can be viewed by anyone), 66% did not include a notice indicating the adult nature of the site and only 11% included a notice indicating adult content and did not display such content on the first page.
There are many implications for children being exposed to pornographic content however an interesting point raised by Holloway, Green and Quin (2004) is that despite all of the heated debates and moral panic, everyday Australian families manage these perceived risks in a variety of ways, and are not overly troubled by the issue.
--Chris McCosker 15:47, 27 Oct 2004 (EST)
--Chris McCosker 16:09, 27 Oct 2004 (EST)
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