In Beyond Tolerance, Philip Jenkins explains
how the Internet has meant that child pornography has become freely available to
an unprecedented number of people. While
the legal penalties for even viewing such pornography are severe, it seems that
these penalties are not strong deterrents. There is good evidence that the number of people regularly viewing these
images is large, certainly in the thousands, and the number of people who are
actually prosecuted for such crimes remains small. Jenkins explains that it is difficult for law enforcement
authorities to track down who is creating web sites with illegal
material and posting pictures and movies to news groups, let alone who is viewing
such material.

Jenkins, while a strong defender of personal
freedoms, explains that he was surprised just how easy it is to find child
pornography on the Internet. He is
normally suspicious of attempts to restrict access to images and generally
argues that those who want to decrease freedom of access to the new media often
exaggerate the danger of child pornography. He writes forcefully about the “powerful democratizing effect” of
the new technology (p. 222). But he is
clear that he is no defender of kiddie porn, and is explicit that we have to
find ways to cripple or kill the subculture that fosters the collection of
these images.

But Jenkins also argues that child pornography laws
need to be more rational. We need to distinguish
between pictures of a topless 17-year old and a naked 5 year old, and Jenkins
worries that new laws fail to adequately make such distinctions. Similarly, we need to distinguish between
nudist pictures of children and movie of a child forced to engage in sexual
activity, and between looking at pictures and forcing children to pose for such
pictures. This is not to say that we
should excuse either form of activity or neglect the connection between the
two. Jenkins quotes a powerful statement
of the US Supreme Court in a 1982 decision:

The distribution of photographs and films depicting
sexual activity by juveniles is intrinsically related to the sexual abuse of
children … the materials produced are a permanent record of the children?s
participation and the hard to the child is exacerbated by the circulation. (5)

This
helps to remind us, should we need reminding, that ultimately what is at issue
is the well being of children, and inappropriate sexual interaction between
children and adults can be extremely harmful to the children.

One of the great strengths of this
book is its investigation of the subculture of child pornography, and how this
parallels the culture on the rest of the Internet. Jenkins explains how certain message boards have a social
structure, with newbies at the bottom and wise ones at the top. It may take a year or more of participation
on a board before someone acquires the status of a wise one. Within the circles of users of child
pornography, there are differences of opinion about what kinds of image are
beyond the pale, and there is frequently debate about what far is too far. Furthermore, Jenkins does a good job at
highlighting the compulsive quality in the collection of images: people try to
have whole collections and will devote considerable energy to complete their
collections through trading or requesting the posting of particular images in
news groups.

There are some issues Jenkins does
not address. He says nothing about what
drives people to risk jail and the loss of friends and family through the
collection of child pornography. While
the phrase ?Internet addiction? may arose suspicion in many, it’s nevertheless
clear that there are many people who devote considerable numbers of hours to
finding, downloading and viewing pornography on the Internet, causing their
other relationships to suffer, and reducing the quality of their lives. Many people know that they should decrease
their use of the Internet for such purposes, and yet fail to do so. Even if we don’t like the label of addiction
being used in such circumstances, it remains clear that in some sense, the
Internet can have a powerful hold on people, and this is presumably also true
in the case of users of child pornography.

Another issue that Jenkins neglects is
the mixed signals given by the mainstream media concerning the sexuality of
children (I’ve also written about this in my reviews of other books; see the
links below). It’s hardly an
exaggeration to say that TV, movies, magazines and billboards bombard us with
images of teens, mainly girls, using sexuality to sell products or to represent
ideals of attractiveness. Popular
culture is certainly not above portraying children in sexualized ways, and the
porn industry is constantly trying to push the boundary between legal and
illegal, with its language of “young teens,” “schoolgirl sluts,” and “lolitas” —
I am sure I can’t be the only person to get regular junk e-mail for sites
promising such pictures! None of this
provides an excuse for the use of child pornography, it nevertheless suggests
that society has a double standard when it comes to the sexuality of young
people, and that we need to more seriously inspect when and how the depiction
of the sexuality of youth is unacceptable.

Even though Jenkins would have done
a more complete job if he had discussed these issues, I still recommend Beyond
Tolerance to anyone concerned about pornography on the Internet and
censorship. The book is written in a
very accessible style and provides a thoughtful analysis of most of the
important topics.

Links:

·Review of Jock
Sturges: New Work 1996-2000

·Review of Anjos
Proibidos, by Fabio Cabral

© 2002 Christian Perring. First Serial Rights.

Christian Perring,
Ph.D., is Chair of the Philosophy Department at Dowling College,
Long Island. He is editor of Metapsychology Online Review.
His main research is on philosophical issues in psychiatry.
He is especially interested in exploring how philosophers can
play a greater role in public life, and he is keen to help foster
communication between philosophers, mental health professionals,
and the general public.

Categories: Sexuality, General

, Internet Addiction