WEBVTT

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
People have been using media to talk
about sex for a long time.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Love letters, phone sex, racy polaroids.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
There's even a story of a girl who eloped
with a man that she met over the telegraph

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
in 1886.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Today we have sexting,
and I am a sexting expert.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Not an expect sexter.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Though, I do know what this means,
I think you do too.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
I have been studying sexting since 
the media attention to it began in 2008.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
I wrote a book on the moral
panic about sexting.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
And here's what I found:

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
most people are worrying
about the wrong thing.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
They're trying to just prevent
sexting from happening entirely.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
But let me ask you this:

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
As long as it's completely consensual,
what's the problem with sexting?

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
People are into all sorts of things
that you may not be into,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
like blue cheese or cilantro.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Sexting is certainly risky,
like anything that's fun,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
but as long as you're not sending an image
to someone who doesn't want to receive it,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
there's no harm.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
What I do think is a serious problem is
when people share private images of others

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
without their permission.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
And instead of worrying about sexting,
what I think we need to do

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
is think a lot more about digital privacy.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
The key is consent.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Right now most people are thinking

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
about sexting without really thinking
about consent at all.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Did you know we currently
criminalize teen sexting?

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
It can be a crime because it counts
as child pornography,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
if there's an image of someone under 18
and it doesn't even matter

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
if they took that image of themselves
and shared it willingly.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
So we end up with this
bizarre legal situation

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
where two 17-year-olds
can legally have sex in most U.S. states

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
but they can't photograph it.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Some states have also tried passing
sexting misdemeanor laws

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
but these laws repeat the same problem

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
because they still make
consensual sexting illegal.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
It doesn't make sense

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
to try to ban all sexting
to try to address privacy violations.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
This is kind of like saying,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
let's solve the problem of date rape
by just making dating completely illegal.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Most teens don't get arrested for sexting,
but can you guess who does?

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
It's often teens who are disliked
by their partner's parent.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
And this can be because of class bias,
racism or homophobia.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Most prosecutors are smart enough
not to use child pornography charges

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
against teenagers but some do.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
According to researchers
at the University of New Hampshire

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
seven percent of all child pornography
possession arrests are teens,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
sexting consensually with other teens.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Child pornography is a serious crime,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
but it's just not
the same thing as teen sexting.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Parents and educators are also
responding to sexting

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
without really thinking
too much about consent.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Their message to teens is often,
just don't do it.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
And I totally get it,
there are serious legal risks

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
and of course,
that potential for privacy violations.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
And when you were a teen,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
I'm sure you did exactly
as you were told, right?

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
You're probably thinking,
my kid would never sext.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
And that's true, your little angel
may not be sexting

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
because only 33% of 16 and
17-year-olds are sexting.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
But, sorry, by the time they're older,
odds are they will be sexting.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Every study I've seen puts the rate
above 50% for 18 to 24-year-olds.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
And most of the time,
nothing goes wrong.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
People ask me all the time things like,
isn't sexting just so dangerous, though,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
like you wouldn't leave your wallet
on a park bench and you expect

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
it's gonna get stolen
if you do that, right?

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Here's how I think about it:

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
sexting is like leaving your wallet
at your boyfriend's house.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
If you come back the next day

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
and all the money is just gone,
you really need to dump that guy

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
So instead of criminalizing sexting to try
to prevent these privacy violations,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
instead we need to make consent central

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
to how we think about the circulation
of our private information.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Every new media technology
raises privacy concerns.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
In fact, in the U.S. the very first
major debates about privacy

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
were in response to technologies
that were relatively new at the time.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
In the late 1800s, people were
worried about cameras,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
which were just suddenly more portable
than ever before,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
and newspaper gossip columns.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
They were worried that the camera
would capture information about them,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
take it out of context
and widely disseminate it.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Does this sound familiar?

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
It's exactly what we're worrying about
now with social media and drone cameras.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
and, of course, sexting.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
And these fears about technology,
they make sense because technologies

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
can amplify and bring out
our worst qualities and behaviors.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
But there are solutions.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
And we've been here before
with a dangerous new technology.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
In 1908, Ford introduced the Model T car.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Traffic fatality rates were rising.


99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
It was a serious problem --
it looks so safe, right?

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Our first response was to try
to change drivers behavior,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
so we developed speed limits and
enforced them through fines.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
But over the following decades,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
we started to realize the technology
of the car itself is not just neutral.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
We could design the car to make it safer.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
So in the 1920s, we got
shatter-resistant windshields.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
In the 1950s, seatbelts.
And in the 1990s, airbags.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
All three of these areas:

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
laws, individuals, industry
came together

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
over time to help solve the problem
that a new technology causes.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
And we can do the same thing
with digital privacy.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Of course, it comes back to consent.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Here's the idea.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Before anyone can distribute
your private information,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
they should have to get your permission.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
This idea of affirmative consent
comes from anti-rape activists who tell us

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
that we need consent for every sexual act.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
And we have really high standards
for consent in a lot of other areas.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Think about having surgery.
Your doctor has to make sure that

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
you are meaningfully and knowingly
consenting to that medical procedure.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
This is not the type of consent with
an iTunes Terms of Service

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
where you scroll to the bottom and
you're like, agree, agree, whatever.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
If we think more about consent,
we can have better privacy laws.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Right now we just don't have
that many protections.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
If your ex-husband or your ex-wife
is a terrible person,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
they can take your nude photos
and upload them to a porn site.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
It can be really hard to get
those images taken down.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
And in a lot of states,
you're actually better off

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
if you took the images of yourself

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
because then you can
file a copyright claim.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Right now, if someone
violates your privacy,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
whether that's an individual or
a company or the NSA,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
you can try filing a lawsuit,
though you may not be successful

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
because many courts assume that
digital privacy is just impossible.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
So they're not willing to punish
anyone for violating it.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
I still hear people
asking me all the time,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
isn't a digital image somehow blurring
the line between public and private

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
because it's digital, right?

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
No! No!

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Everything digital is not
just automatically public.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
That doesn't make any sense.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
As NYU legal scholar
Helen Nissenbaum tells us,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
we have laws and policies
and norms that protect

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
all kinds of information that's private,
and it doesn't make a difference

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
if it's digital or not.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
All of your health records
are digitized but your doctor

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
can't just share them with anyone.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
All of your financial information
is held in digital databases,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
but your credit card company can't
just post your purchase history online.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Better laws could help address
privacy violations after they happen,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
but one of the easiest things
we can all do is make personal changes.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
to help protect each other's privacy.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
We're always told that privacy is our
own, sole, individual responsibility.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
We're told, constantly monitor
and update your privacy settings.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
We're told never share anything you
wouldn't want the entire world to see.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
This doesn't make sense.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
Digital media are social environments

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
and we share things
with people we trust all day, every day.

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
As Princeton researcher
Jennifer ?argues,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
our data and are privacy,
they're not just personal,

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
they're actually interpersonal

99:59:59.999 --> 99:59:59.999
And so one thing you can do,
that's really easy
is just start asking for permission before
you share anyone else's information.
If you want to post a photo
of someone online, ask for permission.
If you want to forward an email thread,
ask for permission.
And if you want to share someone's nude
selfie, obviously, ask for permission.
These individual changes can really
help us protect each other's privacy,
but we need technology companies
on board as well.
These companies have very little
incentive to help protect our privacy
because their business models depend
on us sharing everything
with as many people as possible.
Right now, if I send you an image,
you can forward that
to anyone that you want,
but what if I got to decide
if that image was forwardable or not?
This would tell you that
you don't have my permission
to send this image out.
We do this kind of thing all the time
to protect copy right. 
If you buy an e-book, you can't just
send it out to as many people as you want.
So why not try this with mobile phones?
What you can do is we can demand
that tech companies add these protections
to our devices and our platforms
as the default.
After all, you can choose the color of your car,
but the airbags are always standard.
If we don't think more about
digital privacy and consent,
there can be serious consequences.