DN Twitter poll shows half of respondents have shared nude photos

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Sex has always been a common part of society. But with the increasing amount of technology, it's increasingly easier to sext — but it can have consequences. 

Richard Petts, an associate professor of sociology, said sexting is a social issue that is not surprising among teens and young adults.

“Essentially, this is something that people get swept up and participate in without considering the consequences,” he said.

That's what happened recently at a high school in Cañon, Colorado. In early November, hundreds of nude photographs were found in the possession of students.

About half of the Colorado high school was involved in the production and sharing of the nude photographs. Similarly, a Twitter poll the Daily News conducted of its followers showed roughly half of those who answered have sent or shared nude photos. 

“The competition among [the] boys to acquire the most nude pictures is an example of gender norms in our society and [the] perceptions we have of masculinity,” Petts said. “I also think that this was an instance of collective behavior; it likely became 'the thing to do,' which causes people to engage in this activity without the same sense of self-awareness that they would in other situations.”

For junior digital production major Angie Hubert, who was on the sending side of sexting, she said it was more of a confidence booster than a play on masculinity.

“I think it’s a matter of impressing people," she said. "What I wanted back, the majority of the time, was the compliment, ‘Oh, you're beautiful,’ or saying they liked that certain feature about me."

Freshman political science major James Cummings agreed that sexting is popular among younger generations. He said he only ever sent nude photos his freshman year of high school.

“It’s a huge thing among teenagers. Even in [college], it's huge," Cummings said. "I mean, that’s the original reason Snapchat was created."

Bryon O’Connor, lead developer of Digital Corps, said that when apps like Snapchat are used, there aren’t really precautions that can be taken to protect the spreading of photos.

“I am not aware of any way to prevent installed apps from sharing photos if the user has granted that app permission,” O’Connor said.

Hubert said it is a known fact that Snapchat photos can be screenshot and hidden by other apps. However, according to a Washington Post article, there are things a person can do to prevent a photo from being identified:

  • Never include a face
  • Make the background non-descript
  • Hide any birthmarks, tattoos and piercings
  • Extract the EXIF File (which identifies how, when and where the photo was taken)

Beyond that, however, Hubert and Cummings both said they would hope simple morals would stop someone from sharing a revealing photograph.

“I think it depends on the person. Like, in all honesty, technology wise, [sharing a photo is] super easy," Cummings said. "All I have to do is swipe up, click the share button and it brings up text, email, social media ... it’s super easy to do it. Morally, I don’t think for me it’d be easy. I think I’d feel bad for doing it and for potentially shaming others.”

Having photos shared is a big consequence students face when sexting, but Hubert says most people don’t consider that.

“I don’t think people think of the consequences, just because a lot of things are in the moment," she said. "People make mistakes, and that’s basically the take at it. People do things in the moment and will regret them later just because they don’t think.”

Hubert also said she understands why sexting is prominent in our society and doesn’t judge people for it.

“It's kind of like, I’m not going to be a hypocrite because I understand why kids do this," she said. "I was on every single side of this matter. Sex is an essential need of us as human beings, so I can understand doing it.”

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