Shared sex video: youths on trial

The Danish police has brought charges against more than 1,000 youths for spreading a video showing two 15-year-olds having sex. The film, whose content could be classified as child pornography, was reportedly distributed via Facebook's Messenger app. Is this crackdown justified?

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Jyllands-Posten (DK) /

Time to set an example

Jyllands-Posten welcomes the crackdown:

“The seriousness with which the police has approached this case is highly commendable, because it is necessary to set an example. ... The youths are unlikely to be given prison sentences but they could end up with a ten-year criminal record that for example prevents them from working with children or travelling to the US. ... The uninhibited structure of social media also encourages uninhibited and insensitive behaviour. More and more offensive material is being shared. It is therefore all the more vital that the police take this opportunity to crack down on the culprits - and in this way force people to think about the consequences of their own actions for other people.”

Berlingske (DK) /

Online etiquette part of parenting

The case should certainly give parents food for thought, Berlingske writes:

“Actions have consequences - and the most far-reaching consequences here are those for the young girl who was hurt and humiliated both physically and mentally and turned into an object of amusement by other people against her will. She has said that she was close to taking her own life. ... When you sit in front of a keyboard you don't have to think much. It has repeatedly been demonstrated that our empathy is reduced when we can't see or touch other people. But that doesn't mean they're not human. Consequently parents must make Internet ethics part of their parenting and remind their children to treat others as they themselves would like to be treated - also online.”