November 2015
Riverina parents seeking help for sexualised children: experts
Easy access to porn is partly to blame for a rise in “sexting” between teens, a leading youth expert has warned. It comes as police in Cootamundra last week revealed they destroyed seven mobile phones as part of an underage sexting investigation. The phones, valued at more than $500 each, all contained provocative images of people under the age of 18. Youth expert David Kobler – who last week presented talks at Wagga’s Mater Dei and Kildare Catholic colleges – was unsurprised by the amount of phones destroyed and said sexting was considered “the norm” among teens. “We were at a talk recently where my wife was told a girl had received up to 100 messages from one person asking her to send photos of her breasts,” he said. “She knows it’s sexual harassment, in any workplace it would be considered sexual harassment, but she just accepts it as part of being a teenager. “It’s so engulfed in their culture.”
The Daily Advertiser 30/11/2015
Read more…
BBC3 TV channel to be switched off by February, BBC Trust confirms
The BBC3 TV channel will be switched off by February next year, the BBC Trust has confirmed, despite accepting that almost 1 million younger viewers could desert the corporation as a consequence. The closure of the 12-year-old youth-oriented channel will save the corporation about £30m a year, with some of those savings redirected into its drama budget for BBC1, with the budget for the new online-only service cut to £30m. About £6m of this will be spent on short-form content. The trust announced on Thursday that it had approved the corporation’s long-running intention to scrap the BBC3 TV channel, but told bosses they must boost the amount of programming targeting young people on BBC1 and BBC2.
The Guardian 26/11/205
Read more…
How online porn is fuelling sex addiction: Easy access to sexual images blamed for the rise of people with compulsive sexual behaviour, study claims
The ‘endless supply’ of pornography on the internet is feeding sex addiction, a study has revealed. Sex addiction – when an individual has difficulty controlling their sexual thoughts, feelings or behaviour – is relatively common, affecting as many as one in 25 young adults. Researchers from the University of Cambridge claim this is being fuelled by easy access to sexual images on the Internet.
The Daily Mail 23/11/2015
Read more…
Lord’s Prayer: What are the rules on religious adverts?
Leading UK cinemas are refusing to screen a Church of England commercial reciting the Lord’s Prayer. But what are the rules on religious advertising, asks Justin Parkinson. It features the Archbishop of Canterbury, a grieving man, bodybuilders, a festival-goer, emergency workers, a cattle farmer, a choir, refugees, a commuter, schoolchildren and the audience at a baptism. They say the words of the Lord’s Prayer. Three of the UK’s biggest cinema chains - Odeon, Cineworld and Vue - have banned the advert from being shown on the same bill as Star Wars: The Force Awakens, due to open just before Christmas.
BBC News Online 23/11/2015
Read more…
Students are filmed watching PORN together for a social experiment that leaves the women horrified by the ‘grimy’ footage - but the men find it funny
It’s an activity that usually occurs in private, but a group of students have put embarrassment aside to watch porn together for a social experiment. The young men and women from the University of Bristol were filmed by third year student Gemma Wilson. And they display a variety of different reactions, from shy giggles to recoiling in horror.
The Daily Mail 23/11/2015
Read more…
BBC independence ‘eroded’, says director general
The BBC’s political independence has been gradually eroded, according to the corporation’s director general. In a speech to business leaders on Monday, Tony Hall will urge changes to the way the broadcaster is regulated. He wants licence fee payers to have a greater say than politicians. Lord Hall says there has been a “major change” over the past 20 years which has made the foundations of the BBC’s independence “weaker”. The government has yet to comment. “When I was working in news and current affairs in the ’90s, the independence of the BBC was protected by a set of quiet customs and traditions,” he will say. “Back then it was Willie Whitelaw who’d provided us with the certainty of a 15-year Charter, underpinning our independence by allowing us stability through the political cycle. “When I returned to the BBC as director general, I was struck by a major change. The foundations of the BBC’s independence had become weaker. The traditions and informal arrangements which protected it had been eroded.”
BBC News Online 22/11/2015
Read more…
Is mobile making media all the same?
The internet was meant to be an amazing engine for invention and diversification in media. With the barriers to entry toppling, anybody could become a publisher, and, thanks to the blog revolution, thousands of people did. In the mid-2000s, especially, the dream of web-based nanopublishing was alive and well: if “freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one,” as AJ Liebling famously said, then suddenly hundreds of millions of people had a printing press at their fingertips. Arianna Huffington, and her investors, made a small fortune from aggregating what those people had to say: “self expression is the new entertainment,” she said, and she wasn’t wrong. And then came smartphones. The mobile phone, it turns out, is the greatest homogenising force the media has ever seen. In terms of design: with every pixel precious, sites converged pretty quickly to the format we all now know so well – large photos, clean single-column text on a plain white background, a sticky element at the top of the screen that allegedly allows users to navigate the site but which in practice is mostly just used for branding and/or advertising.
The Guardian 22/11/2015
Read more…
Sky Q: Sky announces new ‘premium’ satellite service with redesigned TV boxes and remote
Sky TV this morning announced a brand-new “premium” satellite television service. Dubbed Sky Q – the new hardware and service will sit alongside the satellite company’s current device line-up, which includes Sky+ HD and NOW TV. The service is set to launch across the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland in earlier 2016. UK pricing has not been announced, but expect Sky Q to be significantly more expensive than Sky+ HD, thanks to its “premium” moniker. Sky Q lets you watch different programmes simultaneously on up to five screens around the home while recording up to four other channels – a first in the UK and Ireland. Sky Q will ship with a new redesigned, slimmer satellite box – the Sky Q Silver.
The Express 18/11/2015
Read more…
Judges ’emotionally damaged’ by a wave of horrific sex cases: Lord Chief Justice says ‘sheer depravity’ of some evidence is putting them under huge strain
Judges are suffering emotional damage because of the increasing number of sex and pornography cases, the Lord Chief Justice said yesterday. Lord Thomas, the leading judge in England and Wales, also said the ‘sheer depravity’ of some of the evidence they had to consider was putting them under huge strain. He spoke out following the courtroom breakdown of the judge who dealt with the killers of 16-year-old Becky Watts last week. Mr Justice Dingemans, a father of three, shed tears as he sentenced Nathan Matthews to 33 years for the ‘despicable’ sexually-motivated murder of his stepsister, and Shauna Hoare, Matthews’ girlfriend, to 17 years for manslaughter. Lord Thomas said: ‘I think that few people have any idea of the sheer depravity to which people can sink and a judge often has material in front of him which cannot but distress people.
The Daily Mail 18/11/2015
Read more…
YouTube Kids app launches in UK and Ireland for child-friendly videos
YouTube is launching its YouTube Kids app in the UK and Ireland, nine months after its child-friendly service went live in the US. More than 10 million American parents have downloaded the app, which serves up a filtered selection of videos and channels that are appropriate for children. The app also removes social features like comments and the ability to upload videos; has a built-in timer to limit how long children can use it; and blocks inappropriate search terms including “sex”. The UK and Irish version of YouTube Kids emphasises local channels, including famous children’s brands like Morph, Teletubbies, Wallace & Gromit and The Magic Roundabout.
The Guardian 18/11/2015
Read more…
Red Button ‘at risk’ from £150m BBC cuts
The BBC could close its Red Button services as part of £150m of cuts. Replacing BBC Ceefax, it offers news and sport text services as well as extra channels during events such as Wimbledon and Glastonbury. A £35m cut is also being made to sports rights. The BBC has already lost the rights to the Open Golf Tournament and while no event has been officially earmarked, it could throw doubt on the corporation’s coverage of sports such as F1 racing. The BBC’s TV budget is also being reduced by £12m, but BBC drama and shows such as Strictly Come Dancing will be protected from the savings. The cuts also include 1,000 job losses, which were announced in July.
BBC News Online 18/11/2015
Read more…
FHM and Zoo closures mark end of lads’ mag era
FHM and Zoo are to close by the end of the year, marking the end of the lads’ mag era that dominated UK magazine publishing in the late 90s and early 2000s. Publisher Bauer Media described the closures, which are still subject to a consultation on the future of 20 jobs across the two titles, as a suspension, but the plan is to close both the print and digital versions of the magazines by 2016. The closures reflect an overall decline in magazine sales, which has seen many titles close and others, such as Time Inc UK’s NME, dropping their cover price and distributing free copies, as readers have moved online. Bauer did not provide an explanation for the decision to cease publishing the titles, but hinted at the cause by saying “men’s media habits have continually moved towards mobile and social”.
The Guardian 17/11/2015
Read more…
Sky warning over ‘cash for porn’ letter
Sky has warned some of its customers they are likely to receive letters demanding cash for illegally downloaded pornographic films. The letters, from the Golden Eye company, which has previously targeted O2 customers, threaten legal action. While Sky stops short of telling users not to pay, it advises them to “carefully read the letter”. The practice of so-called speculative invoicing has been criticised by judges and solicitors in other cases. Speculative invoicing is defined by the Citizens’ Advice Bureau as a “pay up or else” scheme in which “some unscrupulous solicitors and companies… target subscribers to internet services and demand payment from them for copyright infringement to avoid having to go to court”. Sky said Golden Eye had “successfully applied for a court order against Sky”.
BBC News Online 17/11/2015
Read more…
Phones need ‘bed mode’ to protect sleep
Smartphones, tablets and e-readers should have an automatic “bedtime mode” that stops them disrupting people’s sleep, says a leading doctor. Prof Paul Gringras argued the setting should filter out the blue light that delays the body clock and keeps people awake later into the evening. The doctor, from Evelina Children’s Hospital in London, said every new model was “bluer and brighter”. He said manufacturers needed to show more “responsibility”.
BBCOnline 15/11/2015
Read More…
How 12A is the dishonest film rating that betrays children
The final film in the wildly successful Hunger Games series, Mockingjay: Part 2, arrives in UK cinemas next week, starring Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen. The series’ teenage heroine, despite being a ruthless killer, has been hailed as a marvellous role model for girls and young women everywhere. She is venerated by children as young as six or seven, who will be clamouring to see the movie. And they will be able to. Mockingjay: Part 2, like the three previous Hunger Games films, has been given a 12A certificate, meaning that children younger than 12 only have to be accompanied by an adult.
The Daily Mail 12/11/2015
Read more…
Nathan Matthews case reignites debate over violent sexual images
The conviction of Nathan Matthews will focus attention once more on the threat posed to women and children by the viewing of violent pornography and sexual abuse online. Matthews’s name can be added to the list of killers who apparently sought to act out perverted sexual fantasies on their victims, which were fed by the extreme pornography and abuse images they had watched on the internet. These include Mark Bridger, who killed April Jones, Stuart Hazell, the killer of schoolgirl Tia Sharp, Vincent Tabak who murdered Joanna Yeates, and Jamie Reynolds, who took the life of the teenager Georgia Williams.
All these men – like Matthews – amassed and viewed horrific images of abuse and violent pornography, often closely linked to the horrific acts they later inflicted upon their victims.
The Guardian 12/11/2015
Read more…
Strictly swearing
Sir, Further to your report (“Never mind the swearing, dance judge is told”, Nov 10), I want to make clear that the word “b*******” is not acceptable before the watershed. In deciding not to pursue complaints about Strictly Come Dancing, we took into account the live, accidental nature of the incident and clear recognition by the other judges and presenter that this was unacceptable. We also recognised the swift and sincere apology by the presenter. We continue to enforce the watershed to protect audiences and will take swift, robust action when broadcasters get it wrong.
Tony Close, Director of Ofcom
The Times 11/11/2015
Read here: http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/opinion/letters/article4610334.ece
Sexting becoming ‘the norm’ for teens, warn child protection experts
Sexting – the sending and receiving of nude pictures and sexually explicit text messages – is increasingly becoming normal among teenagers, who often don’t realise they may be acting illegally and could face police action, according to the government’s Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre.
The true scale of young people’s sexting activity is unclear, but Ceop is notified of a serious incident on average about once a day, with reports coming from schools, parents or pupils. All involve serious concerns about child protection.
Guardian 10/11/2015
Read More…
German Facebook boss to be investigated for ‘ignoring racist posts’
Prosecutors in Hamburg have launched an investigation into the European head of Facebook over the social platform’s alleged failure to remove racist hate speech, a spokeswoman for the prosecutor has said. The move was announced on Tuesday as German politicians and celebrities voiced concern about the rise of xenophobic comments in German on Facebook and on other social media as the country struggles to cope with the influx of about 1 million refugees this year.
Guardian 10/11/2015
Read More…
The ugly truth behind my perfect Instagram shots: A model confesses
Essena O’Neill; a bikini toting, beach leaping glossy teen who, with over 800,000 followers, was bit of a star on Instagram – one of the world’s most popular social media sites. the 19 year old Australian model said she wanted to expose the artificial world of social media. After spending her teen years curating her life into a polished, barely-clothed sun-kissed world her followers, she said, would finally see the truth.
Telegraph 9/11/2015
Read More…
Mass killings, human-eating monsters and even a public execution… so why is Hunger Games STILL only rated 12A?
With a bombing of families, monsters eating people alive and a public execution, it hardly seems ideal viewing for children. But film censors appear to think otherwise, giving the latest instalment of The Hunger Games a 12A classification, meaning it can be seen by children of primary school age accompanied by an adult.
Vivienne Pattison, director of lobby group Mediawatch UK, said: ‘The industry is terribly keen to get things through as a 12A, as suddenly you’ve doubled your market potentially. ‘There have been quite a few 12A films recently that I just don’t think you’d want to take an eight-year-old to see, although it’s perfectly legal to do so.’
MailOnline 6/11/2015
Read more:
We can’t stop kids viewing porn, admits government: Minister in charge of internet safety says children will always find a way to access explicit material
The minister in charge of internet safety has admitted that children will find a way around online porn filters and access explicit material. Baroness Shields – formerly an executive at Google, Aol and Facebook – told peers that ‘we will never be able to solve this problem completely’. The admission is surprising because she served as David Cameron’s digital adviser last year shortly after he announced a crackdown on children viewing porn online.
The Daily Mail 6/11/2015
Read more…
Bishop of Chester: Pornography as dangerous as smoking or gambling
The Bishop of Chester has told Premier he’s hopeful society will soon realise the adverse effects of pornography just like it did with smoking and gambling. Rt Revd Peter Forster’s been raising awareness of the dangers of porn in the House of Lords after securing a two and a half hour debate on Thursday. While acknowledging that the issue of children’s access to pornography needed to be addressed, he suggests it’s an issue that’s affecting the whole of society. Bishop Peter said the issue had split the house with some calling for tighter controls and others suggesting it isn’t something that should be looked at from a legislation point of view because it’s a private matter.
Premier Radio 5/11/2015
Read more…
Children face ‘sexual coercion’ because of porn - Bishop
Children are being forced into unwanted sexual activity due to the widespread availability of porn, a senior Church of England bishop has warned. The Bishop of Chester called for more curbs on what young people can access on the internet. And he warned that porn users can become addicted to it like people who are dependent on alcohol or drugs. The government has promised new laws forcing “adult” websites to introduce age restrictions. The Bishop of Chester cited a Bristol University study of 13 to 17-year-olds found that 40% had suffered sexual coercion “ranging from rape to being pressurised into unwanted sexual activity often with elements of physical violence”.
BBC News 5/11/2015
Read more…
Ofcom is not currently equipped to regulate BBC, says trust director
A BBC Trust director has said that Ofcom is not equipped to regulate the BBC because it is held to a “different standard of accuracy and impartiality” than the broadcasting watchdog applies to commercial rivals. Alex Towers said that he is “agnostic” on exactly who should regulate the BBC – the BBC Trust, Ofcom, “OfBeeb” or a hybrid – but went on to make a case for why Ofcom’s current remit is not equipped to handle the corporation. “The BBC is consistently held to a different standard on accuracy and impartiality than other broadcasters,” he said, speaking at a Westminster Media Forum on Thursday. “Even where there is currently parallel regulation between Ofcom and the [BBC] Trust, around editorial standards, there is no easy assumption that functions can simply be transferred from one to another.”
The Guardian 5/11/2015
Read more…
Snapchat blackmail: How your explicit selfies could fall into the wrong hands
A 17 year old boy has just been jailed for a year. His crime? Blackmailing two 14-year-old boys into sending him explicit images of themselves. The pictures were sent using the popular social media tool Snapchat, which is designed to delete messages within seconds of them being viewed.
The app allows users to share video, photos and messages on the premise they’ll vanish into cyberspace within moments of being viewed. Though, in reality, they aren’t always gone for good.
Telegraph 5/11/2015
Read More…
Will UK spy bill risk exposing people’s porn habits?
After weeks of conflicting reports, the draft Investigatory Powers Bill has been revealed. It represents the UK government’s attempt to update and tidy up the powers the authorities have to delve into the public’s data to combat crime. It is a huge document - but at its heart is the argument it is illogical officials can scan through itemised lists of the phone calls people make but not the websites and chat apps they use. So, the bill proposes the authorities be given the right to retrospectively check people’s “internet connection records” without having to obtain a warrant. That means, for example, they would be allowed to learn someone had used Snapchat at 07:30 on their smartphone at home and then two hours later visited Facebook’s website via their laptop at work. It may sound fairly innocuous - but of course many people have internet habits that are legal but nevertheless very private. So, is their privacy being put at risk?
BBC News Online 4/11/2015
Read more…
Essena O’Neill quits Instagram claiming social media ‘is not real life’
An Australian teenager with more than half a million followers on Instagram has quit the platform, describing it as “contrived perfection made to get attention”, and called for others to quit social media – perhaps with help from her new website.
Essena O’Neill, 18, said she was able to make an income from marketing products to her 612,000 followers on Instagram – “$2000AUD a post EASY”. But her dramatic rejection of social media celebrity has won her praise.
On 27 October she deleted more than 2,000 pictures “that served no real purpose other than self-promotion”, and dramatically edited the captions to the remaining 96 posts in a bid to to reveal the manipulation, mundanity, and even insecurity behind them.
Guardian 3/11/2015
Read More…
Kate Winslet’s right - Facebook does make you feel ugly. That’s why I’ve ditched it
Kate Winslet has banned social media in her house, and it’s all because of her 15-year-old daughter Mia. Winslet, 30, explained her decision to the Sunday Times like this: “[Social media] has a huge impact on young women’s self-esteem, because all they ever do is design themselves for people to like them.
“And what comes along with that? Eating disorders. And that makes my blood boil. And is the reason we don’t have any social media in our house.”
Telegraph 2/11/2015
Read More…
Dating apps ‘increasing’ rates of sexually transmitted infections, say doctors
Dating apps are increasing rates of STIs, according to the British Association for Sexual Health and HIV.
One of the UK’s leading sexual health doctors says “apps have to invest more time in pushing a safe sex message”.
BBC Newsbeat 2/11/2015
Read More…
Facebook relaxes ‘real name’ policy in face of protest
Facebook has announced plans to water down its controversial “real names” policy, after lobbying from civil liberties groups worldwide. Now, the company is making two major changes to its enforcement of the rule, which it hopes will result in fewer vulnerable individuals caught in the net, while still allowing it to censure users who simply make up a fake name for themselves.
Firstly, the site will now allow users to “provide more information about their circumstances” in order to “give additional details or context on their unique situation”.
Guardian 2/11/2015
Read More…
Snapchat just reserved the rights to store and use all selfies taken with the device
Think that picture you’re about to send is temporary? Think again
The beauty of Snapchat is that the photos only last for a few seconds, unless your friend decides to screenshot them. Even then, you get a notification, so can know exactly which photos of you are owned by someone else.
However, now, the app has changed its terms and conditions so it owns every single photo taken using the app. Not only this, but if you use it, you’re consenting to the app doing whatever it likes with your photographs.
Telegraph 1/11/2015
Read More…
Connect with us
