Cell phones, social media, and the internet have made porn incredibly easy to access. It's time to talk about it... and keep talking about it.
A 2017 study from the UK found that "28% of 11-12 year olds report seeing pornography" and "65% of 15-16 year olds." The results were consistent with a Common Sense Media report from 2022 that said 73% of teens 17 and under had seen online porn and that 58% of those stumbled upon it accidentally. Something X showed us could easily happen.
Numerous mental health studies suggest porn negatively affects young people's mental health, warps their view of sexual relationships, and often leads to addiction. Billie Eilish, on the Howard Stern Show in 2021, famously commented on her porn addiction saying,
I think it really destroyed my brain and I feel incredibly devastated that I was exposed to so much porn.
Her first exposure was at age 11, the same age as our youngest son.
As a family, we've talked about the subject openly and have safety features on our devices and content guardrails on our browsers. No solution is foolproof (especially if it's not enabled), but something is better than nothing. We're working on compiling resources on this subject and will have subsequent posts right here on Substack for teens AND adults — because porn addiction isn't a uniquely adolescent issue.
One last quick note — this week we recorded the first module of our upcoming online course! And the second module script is nearly complete as well.
It’s all about insight on the humans and machines behind social media and relevant tools for responsible digital citizenship. We’ll journey through the three illusions social media exploits to keep us hooked and how to take back control. More details are coming soon!
Share this post