YouSpeak: The Sexting Phenomenon

Is it a bad idea?

| From BU Today | Video by Nicolae Ciorogan

The word “sexting,” which describes the act of sending sexually explicit photos or messages by cell phone or other device, first appeared in a London newspaper in 2005. No one knows how many relationships the practice has helped—or destroyed—but a 2008 survey conducted by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy found that 20 percent of teenagers (ages 13 to 20) and 33 percent of young adults (ages 20 to 26) reported having sent nude or seminude photos of themselves. And 39 percent of teens and 59 percent of young adults said they’d sent sexually explicit text messages. That means there are more young adults out there who have sexted than young adults who haven’t. How smart, or dumb, is that?

This week’s “YouSpeak” asks, “Is sexting a bad idea?”

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