Document Title: Much Ado About Sexting Author(s): Miranda Jolicoeur and Edwin Zedlewski Document No.: 230795 Date Received: June 2010 This report has not been published by the U.S. Department of Justice. To provide better customer service, NCJRS has made this National Institute of Justice (NIJ) produced report available electronically in addition to traditional paper copies. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not been published by the U.S. Department of Justice. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. Much Ado About Sexting by Miranda Jolicoeur and Edwin Zedlewski June 2010 NCJ 230795 Discussion Paper This report has not been published by the U.S. Department of Justice. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. Much Ado About Sexting by Miranda Jolicoeur and Edwin Zedlewski June 2010 NCJ 230795 The opinions and conclusions expressed in this document are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Justice. 1 This report has not been published by the U.S. Department of Justice. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. What is Sexting? “Sexting” is defined in Wikipedia as the act of sending sexually explicit messages or photos electronically, primarily between cell phones.1 Although the word did not exist before 2008, sexting was a finalist for the “word of the year” by the New Oxford American Dictionary in 2009. Sexting takes advantage of modern communication technology to send messages or pictures to one or more parties. While young people typically practice sexting, other age groups sext as well.2 Sexting is not just a U.S. phenomenon. Reports of sexting have been filed in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and even China. Sexters largely rely on cell phones, which are enormously popular among young people. Estimates suggest that between 733 and 874 percent of youth own cell phones. Moreover, teens stay digitally connected. Some 89 percent have a profile on a social networking site like MySpace or Facebook.5 Not surprisingly, the motivations for sexting are rooted in romance and socialization. Among teens who have sent sex messages or photos, 69 percent sent the message to a boyfriend or girlfriend, 39 percent sexted to someone they dated, and 30 percent sexted to someone they wanted to date.6 How Prevalent is Sexting Among Youth? Estimates of sexting prevalence found in youth surveys vary considerably, suggesting that from 4 to 19 percent of youth have engaged in sexting. Two primary explanations for these differences exist: who was targeted by the survey and how sexting was defined. The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, in partnership with Cosmogirl.com, conducted an online survey with 653 teens aged 13 to 19 and 627 young adults aged 20 to 26. The vast majority (87 percent) owned cell phones. When sexting was defined as sending a sexually suggestive message, 38 percent of the teens said they had sent sexts, Nineteen percent of teens said they had sent nude or semi-nude photos. 1 See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sexting. 2 See, for example, Leshnoff, J., “Sexting Not Just for Kids,” AARP Magazine, November 2009. Available at http://www.aarp.org/family/love/articles/sexting_not_just_for_kids.html 3 Cox Communications, National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, and John Walsh, Teen Online &Wireless Safety Survey: Cyberbullying, Sexting, and Parental Controls,, Cox Communications, May 2009, available at http://www.cox.com/takecharge/safe_teens_2009/media/2009_teen_survey_internet_and_wireless_safety. pdf 4 National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy,. Sex and Tech: Results from a Survey of Teens and Young Adults, 2009, available at: http://www.thenationalcampaign.org/sextech/pdf/sextech_summary.pdf. 5 Ibid. 6 Ibid. 2 This report has not been published by the U.S. Department of Justice. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. Among the young adults surveyed, 58 percent had sent sexually suggestive messages, and 32 percent had sent nude or semi-nude photos. The Cox Communications Teen Online and Wireless Safety Survey, in partnership with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, conducted an online survey of 655 teens between ages 13 and 18.7 The survey defined sexting to include: • Text messages and photos. • Sending, receiving, and forwarding the messages. They estimated that 19 percent of teens had been involved in sexting — some 9 percent said they had sent sexts and 19 percent had received sexts. Girls were twice as likely as boys to have sent sexts. Among those who sent messages, 60 percent sent them to a boyfriend or girlfriend; 11 percent sent them to someone they did not know.8 The Pew Internet and American Life Project, in partnership with the University of Michigan, conducted telephone surveys with 800 youths aged 12 to 17 and after surveying their parents. The survey was conducted using random-digit dialing until 800 parent and child interviews were completed. Approximately 135,000 calls were made to achieve the response goals.9 All child interviews were conducted after parental consent was granted. They estimated that only 4 percent of teens with cell phones had sent sexually suggestive photos and 15 percent had received sext messages, considerably lower estimates than those in previous surveys. The MTV-Associated Press (AP) survey10 was conducted online and reached 1,247 respondents between ages 14 and 24. Among young adults (ages 18 to 24), 33 percent had been involved in some type of naked sexting, whereas 24 percent of younger teens had. Overall, 10 percent had shared a naked image of themselves; 45 percent of sexually active respondents (defined as having had sex in the past 7 days) had committed at least one sexting activity. Some differences among prevalence estimates can be attributed to differences in target populations and definitions, and some to methodology. The Cox survey discussed above used the broadest definition. On the other hand, the National Campaign included 18- and 19-year-olds in their population, which captured the increased prevalence of older groups. The MTV-AP study combined responses of young people between ages 14 and 24, which helps explain some of their higher participation rates. In the Pew survey, two- thirds of the youth interviews were conducted via land lines, with parents in the vicinity. Also, Pew’s cutoff age was only 17. 7 Cox Communications et al., Teen Online &Wireless Safety Survey (see note 3). 8 Ibid., 36. 9 Lenhart, A., Teens and Sexting: How and Why Minor Teens Are Sending Sexually Suggestive Nude or Nearly Nude Images Via Text Message, Pew Internet & American Life Project, December 15, 2009, available at: http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1440/teens-sexting-text-messages. 10 Associated Press and MTV, A Thin Line: 2009 AP-MTV Digital Study: Executive Summary, 2009, available at http://www.athinline.org/MTV-AP_Digital_Abuse_Study_Executive_Summary.pdf 3 This report has not been published by the U.S. Department of Justice. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. What Harm Does Sexting Do? Sexting engenders a number of potential harms. Some are fairly immediate; others are more remote. Some involve only family and friends; others pertain to larger populations. The most immediate harm arises from the humiliation of discovery — by parents, authority figures and unintended recipients. Besides humiliation, such discoveries may lead to punishments, such as loss of cell phone privileges or suspensions from school. Other forms of humiliation can occur if recipients are not pleased or if they forward the photos to others. Subsequent harm may also occur through bullying or harassment by recipients. In extreme cases, suicides have resulted.11 Some cases of sexting have resulted in criminal prosecution because the transmission of sexually explicit images of children constitutes child pornography in the United States. For instance, six Pennsylvania high school students were charged with a combination of manufacturing, possessing and distributing pornography when the three girls were discovered to have sent nude and semi-nude photos to three boys.12 Another Pennsylvania case involved child pornography charges for 16 students.13 One of the best- known cases is that of Phillip Alpert. Alpert distributed nude photographs of his former girl friend after a heated breakup. The 18-year-old Alpert was convicted of distributing pornography, placed on probation for five years and must spend 25 years on Florida’s sex offender list.14 Such forms of unwanted notoriety may have longer term consequences. A conviction for a felony or a serious misdemeanor, for example, may create obstacles to college admissions. Sexually explicit photos on social media pages may come to the attention of prospective employers. Such photos may also prove embarrassing for future romantic relationships. Is Sexting Illegal? There is no legal definition of sexting, making it a legal gray area. State law enforcement has charged teens under child pornography laws for sexting because sexting falls within the purview of many states’ child pornography laws. 11 See Celizic, M.,“Her Teen Committed Suicide Over ‘Sexting’” Todayshow.com, March 6, 2009, available at http://today.msnbc.com/id/29546030, and Inbar, M.,“’Sexting’ Bullying Cited in Teen’s Suicide” Todayshow.com, December 2, 2009, available at http://today.msnbc.com/id/34236377.