Politics | 01/15/2009 11:55 am

Sexting: The New Frontier of Flirting, Should You Do It?

By The Staff at wowOwow.com

Watch what you're sending © Shutterstock

We’ve just learned about this latest trend in flirting: "sexting." It’s the act of sending nude or semi-nude photographs via cell-phone text messaging — and it’s apparently sweeping the nation. While the dirty deed might sound exciting for many young teens, it’s landing several middle school and high school students in hot water.

CBS News reports:

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.

Also, word to the older and wiser: While "sexting" may be perfectly OK between two legal-aged lovebirds, you should still be really careful … You wouldn’t want to misplace your cell phone.

Click here to read the full story.

Read more about: Cell Phones, crime, Dating, High School, Lifestyle, News, Relationships, Society, Technology

105 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

I am not saying that having faith in god is a bad thing. Religion is one of the greatest human inventions, imho, one of those that actually made us evolute to humans. And, right because of that, twisting religions and abusing faith to serve political agendas is a crime.

By dandellion Kimban on 01/16/2009 8:42 am

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Your comments led me to believe that kids having faith was wrong and that parents needed to be more friends then parents and sit down and talk to kids about whats right and wrong…There is a point when you have to be a parent and not a friend…you have to be the bad person and lay down the law in your house that your children are to follow…if not then kids doing this type of stuff goes out and thinks its ok and they get other kids to do it and before you know it, its off and running like rats. My Faith is what helps me be a better parent.

By C Hardy on 01/16/2009 10:30 am

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Nonono, having faith is not wrong unless religion is preventing you from seeing facts and using your mind and critical thinking. More friends than parents is tricky thing to decide. For some, those two are not confronted. Sitting down and talking about right and wrong, in a way that enables kids to develop their own ability to differ those two is essential thing in growing a young person. That is so different of giving a premade list of “facts”. “Laying down the law in the house” means you’ve already done a bad job so now you have to fix the damage. Point was to make kids develop a critical thinking so when they do right and not wrong, they know why they are doing this instead of that. Also, that way, they are capable of adapting to new environments and new situations. That is exactly what was missing in the case of these kids doing sexting. They learned (thought that is not called learned, they were trained) not to have sex on the first date, but the rules their parents gave them mentioned nothing about sending nude pics of themselves over the phone. In the age when technology develops so fast, you can never come with the definitive set of rules, you’ll always be step behind, and the children will hasve no idea why is it bad to send pics or have sex on the first date. If there was reasoning instead of rules, they wouldn’t need rules, and probability they will do bad things is much smaller.

By dandellion Kimban on 01/16/2009 1:18 pm

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Most parents would never think when they sit down and talk w/ their kids that they would have to go over texting nude photos of yourself when they gave their teenager a cell phone. Most parents wanted their teenagers to have cell phones so they could stay in touch with them and if needed the kids could call them. Its a trust issue & a parent could sit down w/ their child and go over every possible scenario they can think of and give that child reasons out the caboose & examples & be BFF’s but that does not mean that teenager is not going to get curious and want to experience it for themselves. I mean when I was a teenager my friends were having sex, I dated a guy for a year before we decided to have sex (he was my high school sweetheart, we dated for 7 years total)…having sex with him was not wrong, we were curious and in love and wanted to take it to the next level…as a parent my Mother took me out and got me birth control to make sure I would not get pregnant even though condoms were used…she was my friend but first and foremost she was my parent and if I wanted to go out I needed to listen to my parents. Teenagers today know parents can’t discipline them like it use to be done so they know they can get away with more…I remember one day threatening my Mom that I would call child services on her, boy that was a hoot…she picked up the phone, dialed the #…that called my goat. She didnt sit me down and tell me how wrong it was, I figured it out pretty quickly. The bottom line is no matter how good of friends or how strict of a parent you are with your children they will do what they want to do as findign themselves and expressing themselves.

By C Hardy on 01/16/2009 2:05 pm

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You are right. There is no way that parent can go over the every possible scenario. And also, kids will go and taste the unknown. Both of those are the reason why kids need to think for themselves armed with facts and not just to be disciplined. Yes, kids will do stuff that is not quite wise. They did it since the dawn of the civilization. Look at the cats in the cradle, they jump out of the box before you think they are ready to walk around. That is the nature’s way.

By dandellion Kimban on 01/16/2009 4:02 pm

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Ms Dandellion, I think we were both coming to the same conclusion but around different corners.

By C Hardy on 01/16/2009 4:10 pm

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Yes, we’re coming from different ends and ending in slightly different ends but we’re sharing the intention. Which is good, exchange if ideas with you gave me some insights. Thanks.

By dandellion Kimban on 01/17/2009 7:12 am

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The same goes for you! Thank you! Look forward to speaking with you again.

By C Hardy on 01/17/2009 7:16 pm

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You are wrong when you say that laying down the law means that you have already done a bad job. Laying down the law as you state, allows kid to to know what the parameters are, & that there are consequences for thier action. Yes you have to sit them down & expain right & wrong, but if there are no consequences for bad actions, they will never learn. Most kids if ask, will tell you that they want their parents to set limits. As a retired educator, I saw many instance of both sides of this issue, both when talking to the kids & with the parents. it was very easy to spot the kids that had no disipline or limits set at home, as many of them illustrated their lack of respect to teachers & other adults, as well as to other kids. On the other side it was very easy to see the kids that had disipline & limits set. They for the most part showed respect.

By Robert Thompson on 01/17/2009 12:04 pm

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When the law comes into the game, it means that the damage has been already done. Morality deals with right and wrong. Law deals with forbidden and allowed. If your kid doesn’t know what’s right and what is wrong, then you have to forbid. Accept that as your failure to successfully teach them what’s right and what’s wrong. Healthy society is made of individuals who do not do wrong things. People who do not forbidden things are constituting a peaceful jail. I am very disappointed every time I realize that so many people are in need of restrictions. That’s because they lack any sense of morality (despite their bragging about religion and decency). Worst of all, they are making their kids inherit the same lack of morality. Btw, teachers don’t get their authority by kid’s parents but earn it by themselves. If teacher doesn’t earn it alone, those kids that shows it are not really respecting, they are jut trained to sit and be quiet like a good puppies. But that’s not showing respect, that’s being scared. And that in any case doesn’t mean that teachers are worthy, just that they are teaching the trained, scared puppies.

By dandellion Kimban on 01/18/2009 2:03 pm

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Do you have childern? Are you a teacher?

By Robert Thompson on 01/20/2009 5:57 pm

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Well stated!!!!!

By Donald Duck on 01/16/2009 12:49 am

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Chrome Toe You are right. The pornification of our youth will not teach young adults the ability to love themselves or others, and it certainly does not teach what it takes to conduct a healthy relationship. Desensitization is happening on so many levels and they don’t even know it is happening. The arguments I have had about first person shooter games with my sons, and why they can’t have them because of desensitization of acts of harm (if they are older than 18 and can buy them for themselves then there is nothing I can do about it) they think I am crazy - I disagree.

By Frannie Em on 01/16/2009 2:37 pm

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The internet has opened up a whole new world for kids everywhere with My Space and Space Book where about enything goes. It’s cute and hip to send nude photos, parties have drinking and sex with young teens, and some parents encourage their kids to be popular doing anything to be so with little supervision. Text messaging has replaced just talking, and now nude pictures are reaching predators who love stuff like this. This will one day come back to bite those who are doing so and allowed to get away with it.. I hope this activity is stopped, as it desensitizes people at too young an age to what should be left for adults. I think I just sort of repeated you, CT

By Lizzie R. on 01/15/2009 9:39 pm

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I M Lizzie…I hate to tell you this but kids going to high school parties has been going on for years and years and years and years, etc…the only thing that has changed is that they do have myspace and facebook which again should be monitored by parents. Dont give your children a computer in their rooms where they can go in and close the door and you dont know whats going on…put the desk where you can see what your child is doing and what webpages your child is looking at…your kids may be smart but parents have to be smarter but it does boil down to that kids will explore and they will do what they want regardless of what we teach them. Most kids know right from wrong but when they are pressured from other kids who dont care, its a different story. Any celebrity who makes multi million dollars for acting gets paid too much then someone who works hard every day at their jobs…and we let those celebrities be heroes to our children, what happened to cops, fire fighters being heroes?

By C Hardy on 01/16/2009 8:04 am