“Sexting” Shockingly Common Among Teens

Jan. 15, 2009(CBS/ AP) While it may be shocking, the practice of “sexting” – sending nude pictures via text message – is not unusual, especially for high schoolers around the country.

This week, three teenage girls who allegedly sent nude or semi-nude cell phone pictures of themselves, and three male classmates in a western Pennsylvania high school who received them, are charged with child pornography.

In October a Texas eighth-grader spent the night in a juvenile detention center after his football coach found a nude picture on his cell phone that a fellow student sent him.

Roughly 20 percent of teens admit to participating in “sexting,” according to a nationwide survey (pdf) by the National Campaign to Support Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy.

“This is a serious felony. They could be facing many years in prison,” CBS News legal analyst Lisa Bloom said of the six teens in Pennsylvania.

But, Bloom added, “What are we going to do, lock up 20 percent of America’s teens?”

Police in Greensburg, about 30 miles east of Pittsburgh, say the girls are 14 or 15 and the boys charged with receiving the photos are 16 or 17. None are being identified because most criminal cases in Pennsylvania juvenile courts are not public.

Police say they first learned about the pictures in October. They say a student had a phone turned on in class, a violation of school policy, which prompted an administrator to confiscate the phone and subsequently find the pictures, reports CBS station KDKA-TV.

Powerful video from www.netsmartz.org educating teenagers and children on the dangers inherent in cell phone and Internet communication. Every parent should show this to their child before allowing them to have a cell phone or actively participate in social networks online.

If you’re the parent of a teen, it’s the topic that you dread. Parent TV explores the subject of teens and sex. From the internet to “sexting”, technology has opened a new arena for teens to explore and engage in sex. Also talks about a website, www.sexetc.org, which is run by teens for teens.

KPTV’s Kevin Coari reports on teens sending explicit photos of themselves on their cell phones, called ’sexting’.

Source: KPTV
Added On May 3, 2008

Rusty McGuire, Chief Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney for Louisa County, Virginia joined Julie Bragg and Greg McQuade of “Virginia This Morning” to discuss the dangers of sexting. Parents with teenagers should watch this video and pass this on to their friends.

A news report on teenagers who have actually been arrested for sexting!

Do you know what your teen is saying via text message? 33 News (Dallas/Fort Worth) investigates the newest phenomenon in flirting called “sexting.” Parents find equally high tech ways to snoop such as using the Cell Phone Spy Data Extractor (http://www.BrickHouseSecurity.com) to find out exactly what they’re kids are saying and doing.