Let’s Help Teens Practice Safe Sext

In an episode of the TV comedy series Arrested Development, Tobias Funkë accidentally takes a picture of his genitals with a borrowed mobile phone.

The picture makes its way to a federal prosecutor’s office and finally into the hands of the FBI and the CIA, where it is mistaken for a satellite photograph of Iraq.

Through a careful analysis of the geography of wrinkles and moles, the US Military confirms the locations of several Weapons of Mass Destruction. A massive invasion and attack plan is prepared. Air, sea, and ground forces are mobilized.

Meanwhile, Tobias is watching the TV news. The map on which the government is basing their invasion is displayed on the screen. Tobias is shocked. He glances down at his groin, then says in dismay: “I’m on… TV…”

Originally aired on December 12, 2004, this is possibly the earliest recorded incident of sexting.

And it’s a humorous example of a common outcome of the practice: unintended public display of one’s nether regions.

Social Media: Canadian Teens Have a (Slight) Edge

Two recent surveys collected numbers on teen use of social media sites like Facebook and Windows Live (What’s Your Child Doing on Facebook? and Cox Communications’ National Teen Summit on Internet and Wireless Safety). Interestingly, Canadian teens are slightly more likely than their American counterparts to maintain profiles on social networking sites: 76% of Canadian teens have profiles, while 72% of US teens do. In both cases, Facebook is the de facto choice for teens’ online activities: fully 93% of those Canadian teens with a profile use Facebook.

Interestingly, both surveys highlighted the level of parental ignorance regarding online teenage activities. Associate Vice President of Ipsos Reid, Mark Laver said,

Online teenagers’ use of social networks has expanded rapidly in the past 18 months; however, their parents’ usage hasn’t kept up. Consequently, some parents will have little to no clue about what their children are doing online.