Study Exposes Teen Sexting Myth

Staff / Truthdig Dec 6, 2011 What's with those teenagers sending around photos of their privates? It turns out they're just a fantasy. A new study asked kids whether they had created and sent sexually explicit images of themselves (rather than the vaguer "do you sext?") and only 1 percent said "yes." Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Prude Power Hits Britain

Staff / Truthdig Oct 11, 2011 British Prime Minister David Cameron and four of the country's Internet service providers are bending over backwards to accommodate parents concerned with the allegedly corrosive influence of titillating adverts and porn sites on youth, because teenagers never thought about sex before billboards were invented. (more) Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Oregon Congressman Resigns Amid Allegations of Sexual Misconduct

Staff / Truthdig Jul 27, 2011 Facing a House ethics investigation into allegations that he had a non-consensual sexual encounter with a teenage girl, U.S. Rep. David Wu, an Oregon Democrat, announced his resignation Tuesday and said he would leave office once the debt ceiling impasse had ended. Wu, a Congress member since 1999, was the first Chinese-American to serve in the House. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

News Flash: Kids Don’t Need Energy Drinks

Staff / Truthdig May 31, 2011 Energy drinks might have more serious side effects for children and teenagers than just getting them good and hyper, according to a group of doctors who released a cautionary report in the journal Pediatrics, warning that the amped-up beverages might trigger seizures and other highly undesirable reactions in rare cases. As it happens, they should also lay off the Gatorade. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Getting Under Your ‘Skins’

Ruth Marcus / Truthdig Feb 10, 2011 American parents owe a debt of gratitude to MTV for its series of public service announcements illustrating the dangers of illegal drugs, excessive drinking and casual sex otherwise known as "Skins." Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Teen Girls Who Play Video Games With Parents Are Less Depressed

Staff / Truthdig Feb 3, 2011 According to a new study, girls 11-16 years old who play video games with their parents are less depressed and, in the words of this Bloomberg report, "generally better behaved" than those who don't. Apparently "Rock Band" creates Stepford children. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Driving Phone-Toxicated

Ruth Marcus / Truthdig Sep 17, 2010 I am, as of this writing, 144 days away from never again being able to sleep soundly. That is when my 15-year-old daughter, as she delights in constantly reminding me, will receive her learner's permit. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Squares Sound the Alarm on ‘Digital Drugs’

Staff / Truthdig Jul 15, 2010 The YouTubes are filling up with videos of teenagers engaging in the disturbing use of recreational drugs -- in the form of digital music files. Buzzkill. We're not sure which is more embarrassing -- getting "high" from an audio recording or worrying about it. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Teen Birthrate Drops in 2008

Staff / Truthdig Apr 6, 2010 There weren't as many children having children in the U.S. in 2008. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the rate of teen pregnancies dropped by 2 percent that year, hopefully signaling a downward trend, after climbing over the two previous years. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Sexting — and Common Sense

Ellen Goodman / Truthdig Apr 23, 2009 Vermont, Ohio and Utah are among the first states trying to back away from laws that treat a teenager with a cell phone as if he or she were a child pornographer. They know there's a difference between truly dreadful judgment and a felony. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Bristol Palin: Abstinence-Only Plan Doesn’t Work

Staff / Truthdig Feb 17, 2009 Last fall, Bristol Palin became a controversial figure in her mother Sarah Palin's vice presidential bid when it was revealed, not long after the elder Palin took to the campaign trail, that the teenaged Bristol was pregnant by her high school boyfriend. Now Bristol has re-emerged to make a few comments that run against her mom's approach to teen sex ed. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

‘Help Me’: Gitmo Video Shows Tearful Teen

Staff / Truthdig Jul 15, 2008 Canadian lawyers released a wrenching 2003 video -- the first of its kind ever made public -- of a tearful 16-year-old boy suffering what appears to be a mental breakdown during an interrogation by Canadian officials at the U.S. prison camp at Guantanamo Bay. Five years later, Omar Khadr has still not been charged with any crime. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )