Instead of waiting to publish this episode on July 3rd to keep with our normal episode schedule, we wanted to get this conversation to you as quickly as possible. We will be back to our normal release schedule with episode 67!
Today the Supreme Court issued their opinion that the Texas Age Verification law is constitutional and paves the way for other states to pass similar legislation!
It’s an incredible day in the movement to end sexual exploitation as the Supreme Court ruled that the age verification law in Texas is constitutional – pushing back on the arguments from the opposition that it violates the First Amendment.
Haley and Dani chat about the details of this ruling and the ripple effect this will have across the country. It’s notable that the dissenting opinions were actually in agreement on the core issue at play here: pornography is harmful – especially for kids.
As congress considers whether or not to implement a proposed 10-year moratorium on A.I. state regulation, Haley and Dani talk about the potential devastating effects this could have. Some have even referred to this as “Section 230 on steroids” so this episode is essential for understanding what the moratorium is and what the impacts would be. Big Tech doesn’t need another layer of immunity or security to allow them to hide while they profit off the exploitation of human beings in the name of advancing technology. Listen and share this episode and use the links below to take action and learn more!
Urge Congress to oppose this moratorium: https://endsexualexploitation.org/AImoratorium
Read more about this on our blog: https://endsexualexploitation.org/articles/a-trojan-horse-in-congress-10-year-moratorium-would-block-a-i-safety-bills/
Nicki Petrossi (from Scrolling2Death) joins Haley to discuss big tech, social media, and protecting our kids online. They talk about the need for these companies to do MORE while also calling on parents to learn about the devices and apps their kids are using. Some of these apps look incredibly kid-friendly but have virtually no meaningful protections between young kids and predatory adults. Roblox is a great example of this, and Haley and Nicki dive into the details behind this popular game platform. They also highlight the importance of whistleblowers at companies like Meta to reveal the truth of what’s going on behind the scenes and how these corporations are prioritizing profit over people.
Nicki Petrossi is a mom of three and former social media executive turned social media reform advocate. In late 2023, Nicki launched Scrolling 2 Death, a podcast for parents who are worried about social media. Since then, Nicki has published over 250 podcast episodes which include conversations with U.S. Senators and lawmakers, tech whistleblowers, doctors, attorneys, teachers and most importantly – parents and youth – to learn about their experiences online.
Nicki travels the country, speaking to large audiences at schools, conferences and summits on topics related to online safety. She regularly appears on news segments like America’s Newsroom on Fox, NBC and Morning on Merit Street by Dr. Phil, in addition to appearing as a guest on dozens of parenting and health-related podcasts.
Follow Nicki on social media and subscribe to the Scrolling2Death podcast:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scrolling2death/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Scrolling2Death
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/nickireisberg
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0cXhBYHDOgmKL8SmMW3fMa?si=22397a71ebff4568
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/scrolling-2-death/id1700331740
Read about the App Store Accountability Act and take action:
https://endsexualexploitation.org/articles/app-store-accountability-act-addressing-the-chokepoints-for-online-child-exploitation/
Read about this group’s test of Instagram’s Teen Accounts:
https://endsexualexploitation.org/articles/instagram-teen-accounts-put-to-the-test-promises-vs-reality/
Expert Attorney and Director of the NCOSE Law Center, Dani Pinter, Esq., joins Haley McNamara to take a closer look at the ongoing trial for Sean “Diddy” Combs. Dani provides a summary of the charges as well as giving us an explanation of the true definitions of sex trafficking and coercion in direct response to what is being claimed in court when using those terms.
Learn more about Sex Trafficking: https://endsexualexploitation.org/issues/sex-trafficking/
Learn more about the NCOSE Law Center: https://endsexualexploitation.org/law-center/
Our Commitment to Walking Alongside Survivors: https://endsexualexploitation.org/walking-alongside-survivors/
This week, we hear from Kathryn Rifenbark, the Director for CyberTipline, Public Reports, in the Exploited Children Division (ECD) at the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC). In this talk from the 2024 CESE Summit, she shares about the impact of Sextortion on today’s young people and talks about a powerful new service that can be used to help.
Self-generated content is a normative behavior of today’s youth. But it can have a destructive impact when it’s non-consensually shared or when they have been blackmailed or coerced into producing it. Take It Down is a new, anonymous, and free service that can help prevent the spread of online sharing of nude, partially nude, or sexually explicit images or videos of those under the age of 18. This session will provide an overview of Take it Down, operated by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC). Launched in December of 2022, participants will learn the amazing impact of this global program, how it works and how you can share this resource with children, victims, and families in your community.
Kathryn has worked at NCMEC for over 14 years, and in her current position, Kathryn is responsible for enhancing NCMEC’s efforts to improve resources for survivors of child sexual abuse material by liaising with law enforcement, victim service providers, and child serving professionals as well as managing the team who processes public CyberTipline reports. She received a Master of Arts in Forensic Psychology and a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology.
NCMEC’s Take It Down service: https://takeitdown.ncmec.org/
Learn more about NCMEC: https://www.missingkids.org/
Read the article “Sextortion: The Largest Blackmail Operation In Human History” https://endsexualexploitation.org/articles/sextortion-the-largest-blackmail-operation-in-human-history/