Pornography and Teens on the InternetThis essay discusses the social impact of teens' exposure to Internet pornography. In a report, “Generation Rx.com: How Young People Use the Internet for Health Information,” the Kaiser Family Foundation states that seventy (70%) of adolescents (defined as those ages 15 to 17) “have accidentally stumbled upon pornographic material on the Web". 57% of teens said that “exposure to pornography would have a serious impact on kids under 18,” while 41% of teens responded that such exposure is “not a big deal.” accountability when nearly three in four teens report accidentally encountering pornography on the Web. The greatest lack of accountability lies with federal and state prosecutors who turn a blind eye to obscenity on the Internet. If obscenity laws were vigorously enforced, the last thing hardcore pornographers would want to do is draw attention to their vile products by engaging in reckless marketing methods. If rigorously enforced, there would also be far less pornography to accidentally stumble upon. But prosecutors aren't the only ones guilty. Some ISPs offer parents the ability to filter pornography, but refuse to block access to even illegal pornography unless a parent requests filtering. Some online services have rules against pornography, but refuse to actively monitor use of their services for violations. Many libraries and schools refuse to install screening technologies, arguing that rules and monitoring of computer use can protect children from Internet pornography. Even assuming that such means discourage adolescents from actively seeking pornography, how do they protect...... middle of paper ...... indicates that pornography precipitates "a cascade of changes in the body that have a impact on health". This supports former Surgeon General Everett Koop's diagnosis that pornography is an "overwhelming public health problem." Gary Lynch, a neurologist at the University of California at Irvine, confirms these assessments. Brain research, he explains, reveals that what is seen in three-tenths of a second, "has produced a structural change that in some sense is as profound as the structural changes that are seen in [brain] damage." It can "leave a trace that will last for years." (Psychopharmacology) WORKS CITED: "Generation rx.com" http://www.kff.org/content/2001/20011211a/AgendaFINAL.pdfNew Jersey Family Policy Council. http://www.njfpc.org/research_papers/"Psychopharmacology of pornography" http://drjudithreisman.org/Michell's%20brain,%20Jan%203,2002.htm