How Should Parents Address Internet Pornography?

I remember having this very discussion on a Facebook post that I shared where a former schoolmate of mine, a mother of a teenage boy, was furious that I had mentioned that I didn’t want to ban pornography. Her argument was that young kids would see it and get affected by it. Another friend joined in the discussion and he was with me : we don’t want to ban pornography but we don’t want kids to be exposed to it. If you are worried about your child watching porn online, monitor their internet usage and be more active in controlling what your kid sees online.

I honestly believe that if you have young kids at home and you plan on giving them a laptop / desktop with Internet access, do not give them the connection in their room. Keep their personal laptop or tab with them but restrict their internet usage to a system kept in the living room or dining table or whatever, in plan view of the rest of the household. Be near them when they have to go online. Put parental locks or controls or whatever needed to restrict certain websites.

Look at the end of the day, he or she is going to see something that you don’t want them to see. Either by accident or they might be with a friend who has unrestricted access to stuff online or otherwise. Educate your kids, let them know why you don’t want them to watch this stuff. Tell them that there are genuine concerns that could affect their thinking. Do something constructive and treat them like you respect their opinion too but care for them.

Prompt from The Learning Network at The New York Times