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Wednesday 1 July 2020

Is it possible to stop children viewing porn?

This question has been on my mind since giving birth. Will I be able to protect my children from viewing adult material (along with all the other things I need to protect them from)?

In a world where adult content is getting harder and harder to avoid, it can be a scary concept for many parents. There are billboards and bus signs, lingerie shops with larger than life posters, female nudity in numerous TV shows and movies, music video clips with barely dressed females gyrating around the camera. It seems like every man (woman) and his dog is using sex to sell things to the public.

There are predators lurking in all corners of the internet, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Youtube, chat rooms and online gaming.

I've written about this before, how we're told as parents "If you don't like it don't watch". This puts the onus on parents to police everything instead of government bodies (or whomever) policing companies that allow this type of material to be aired, shown or viewed by children.

I would consider myself to be a very diligent parent. I check ratings and information on movies before viewing them because I want to know if they're violent or contain adult content. Yet I have been shocked by certain movies (rated M) I didn't think would be bad, and accidentally exposed my children to content I didn't know was coming!

Still worse than that, I've recently discovered one of my young children (not even a teen) found (and possibly viewed) adult material.

They were on Youtube watching cartoons, or rather channels where the hosts make or show random funny cartoons (not like Tom & Gerry or The Simpsons). Still, not adult content by any means. Other people can leave comments on these videos and somebody posted a link to an adult video. I found out because somehow the video downloaded to the device and I monitor the device.

This lead to a discussion firstly about how it happened and my child saying the video didn't play for them and they had no idea it got downloaded. Then to a discussion about adult videos.

Here is where it gets tricky because it is hard to talk about these issues without my own personal views coming out. So I started by telling my child they're not in trouble. Then I asked them to consider that parents do adult things behind closed bedroom doors, we don't just do the act in the lounge room where children or visitors can watch; we're not allow to do things like that in public places. Why? Because generally it's considered private acts between consenting adults. It is hidden away so children can't view adults doing adult things.

I ended with telling my child, "You're a child, this isn't the type of thing you need to concern yourself with". Especially considering if I try to talk about birds & bees things (intimacy) my children are like, "La la la la!" and blocking their ears!

We ended with a warning not to click on those links and to report them if they can and most certainly TELL me next time it comes up. Do I trust they will? I have my doubts. I've changed settings on Youtube and their devices are locked away over night.

As a parent is this something you've had to handle? What did you do? If you haven't faced this issue, how do you think you might face it if it occurred?

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