Children and the Internet By Julia Zorkina and Milagros Ramirez

The Internet has become one of if not the strongest form of communication across cultures and nations. With this in mind, the Internet gives rise to serious debates concerning the content and accessibility of this information. Most importantly, children's accessibility to the Internet and what type of information they are receiving gives rise to questions of safety and protection against inappropriate content matter. We wish to address the issue of children and Internet usage, and examine the social, psychological and political implications of children's accessibility to the Internet.
      Two central factors that lead children to the Internet include the issue of anonymity and easy access. Any form of media can be viewed, downloaded or purchased in complete privacy and anonymity. Kids can browse thousands of pornographic sites and hide it immediately with the click of a button. In addition, the Internet is also easily accessible, and the cost is practically nothing. There are no paper and ink costs, no postage or distribution charges. More importantly, it is easily accessible to children, within public libraries, educational institutions and the privacy of their home that may or may not monitor their on-line time.
     Children typically know more than adults give them credit for. Children are clicking their way to exciting new worlds, and being constantly exposed to both the benefits and dangers of the Internet. In order for children to develop their potential on-line, we must address the destructive misuse of this technology. Software providers do not understand how serious these problems on the Web are to the average family. Browser design has focused on power, speed and high tech graphics. There has been little attempt to provide security against unwanted material of concern to the family. Kids access these different sites in several ways, such as misdirected searches, instant messages, and unsolicited email. The effects of such access to inappropriate content can be harmful.
     Parents play an important role in providing effective preventative measures against children misusing the Internet. Parents need to establish the rules of the "Information Superhighway," and spell out what their kids can do, what they should avoid, and how to respond to uncomfortable material. To do this, parents also have to be educated on what is out there and how it can affect children's social and emotional development. In addition to parents, legislation and software providers have to take special consideration to children when launching new Web sites or attempting to modify older ones. As a community, we must examine benefit-costs relationship between children and the Internet in order to ensure it is being used appropriately. On this Web page, we will talk about different issues that worry parents about their children's use of the Internet.

  1. Pornography
  1. How Available is Pornography to Our Children?
  2. What are the Detrimental Effects of Pornography on Children?
  1. Violence
  1. How Aggression Can Be Learned On-Line through Viewing "Hard-Core" Pornography and Playing Violent Video Games.
  2. How Can Hatred and Racism be Encountered On-Line?
  3. An Example of Violence being Encouraged through the Internet: Columbine Shooting.
  4. What Else Can Your Kids See On-Line that Talks About Death and Violence?
  1. Shopping
  1. Can Your Child Buy Alcohol On-Line?
  2. What About Tobacco?
  3. Illegal Drugs?
  1. Chat Rooms
  1. Child Molesters and Pedophiles On-Line
  2. Cyber Sex and Children
  3. Unwanted Advances on the Internet
  4. Are Chat Rooms a Waste of Time?
  5. Advantages of Chat Rooms
  1. Restrictions and Filters
  1. Passwords
  2. Site Blocking
  3. Content Filters
  4. Password Protection
  1. Faulty Filters
  1. An Argument Against Using Filtering Programs
  1. Safe Surfing -- Guidelines for Parents
  1. What Can Parents Do?
  2. Great Web Sites for Children
  1. Legal Concerns
  1. Children's On-line Privacy Protection Act (COPPA)
  2. UNESCO's Role in the Issue of Children and the Internet
  1. Educational Aspects
  1. Children and Computers -- The Benefits
  2. Report From the National School Board of Education
  1. Statistics
  1. Facts and Numbers About the Use of the Internet by Children.

Pornography How Available is Pornography to Our Children?
In March of 1998, there were 100,000 commercial pornography Web sites on the Internet, and an estimated 200 new sites are created every day. An interest in technology also grows along with children's interest of surfing the Web. The consequences of it can be very serious if the parents don't supervise their children. In particular, parents should watch out for pornography sites that their child might stumble upon (or even visit it on purpose).
      The reality is that children often go on-line unsupervised by their parents and there is rarely anything on the Internet that's hard to find. In many families, children have more time to access the Internet than their parents, because they have more free time to use computers at home, in a library, or in school, which results in children knowing a lot more than their parents about computers. Children's access to pornography is a debated issue, but overall, it is very disturbing and deserves careful consideration.

What are the Detrimental Effects of
Pornography on Children?
There has been a lot of clinical research done about psychological consequences of children's exposure to pornography. Exposing minors -- either intentionally or unintentionally -- is even considered child sexual abuse -- that's how serious the consequences can be. It has been confirmed that porn shows up in children's dreams and nightmares. The material is so confusing and emotionally charged for children that it can have serious long-term consequences on emotional and ego development. Exposure to pornography interferes with a child's development and identity. It would expose them to things that are too early for them to think about and since they don't quite understand the meaning of what they see on the screen, they would try to make something out of it and come up with false ideas and beliefs about sexual relationships and their sexual identities.
     Exposure also shapes their attitudes and values. Most of what they show on those Web sites does not happen in real life; however, children will believe it. Pornography is teaching children and young men distorted values not only about their sexuality, but also about healthy relationships with women and respect.
     The institution of family is one of the central pillars in our society. Both families and children (except in child pornography) are nonexistent in the world of pornography. Marriage is continually attacked, with the assumption of unfaithfulness with multiple partners.
     Degradation and humiliation of women are common, and even "promoted" on those Web sites. Porn sites also promote abusive attitudes toward women, which encourages inequality, sexual harassment, and violence. Thus, exposure to pornography may incite children to act out sexually against other children, thereby exposing other children, especially girls, to inappropriate words, behavior and situations. In addition, exposure to pornography promotes desensitization. When kids are desensitized to the "softer" material, soft-core images and "love scenes" will no longer arouse them. This leads to sexual disturbance and problems in relationships.
     In conclusion, pornography on-line should be an overwhelming issue for parents and educators. Its effects on the children are profound, and considering the almost unlimited access to the Internet provided to the children by libraries, schools, and their own parents, we should take it very seriously. In later sections we will discuss things parents can do to protect their kids from the harmful experiences of being exposed to pornography: simple common sense rules as well as some products offered on the market that could prevent your children from accessing inappropriate materials.