Can pornography get any worse? Yes, it can.

I recently attend a www.PornHarms.com conference discussing sexual exploitation and anti-pornography issues.  The “Coalition to End Sexual Exploitation 2014 Summit” was attended by leaders of organizations from around the world including radical feminists, scholars, therapists, an ex-pornographer, an ex-porn film star, religious leaders from various churches, and some technology people that develop Internet content filters, like me.

To say that I learned something new is an understatement. After the initial shock, I realized there were two alarming trends in the pornography industry that I noticed while scholars and experts spoke on the issue:

1. Pornography is getting more violent and more deviant. 
2. Child pornography use is increasing; it’s in very high demand. 

The implications of these two trends are various and disheartening.  Here are four that quickly come to mind.

First, when a young child or teen finds pornography online, he will find images that are more disgusting, shocking, and hardcore than ever before.  Parents must ask themselves: Do I want that to happen?  If not, have I protected my child’s computer, phone, or tablet with an Internet filter?

Second, more shocking and hardcore material will push the addict’s cravings to higher addiction levels as the brain responds to the intense images.  Overall, viewers will find it more and more difficult to quit.  Today’s pornography is the new crack cocaine. 

Third, increased consumption of child pornography will create more demand. Demand will fuel the need to increase content production. The need for more child pornography film participants will increase. From where will the child participants be found? Sex traffickers? Kidnappers? 

Fourth, I expect the increased levels of the availability and demand of child pornography create a new class of pedophile or sex offender.

Case in point: a story this week in the New York Times told of 70 men and 1 woman arrested for possession or production of child pornography. Those arrested included a few police officers and a police chief, a Rabbi, a Boy Scout leader, a few nurses, a paramedic, a few computer programmers, and some others.  The woman arrested was charged with creating child pornography; she used her young son.

Sadly, parents need to be aware of this trend.  We have a moral obligation to protect innocent kids who might mistakenly find hardcore images online.  Also, parents need to more readily watch out for teens who can easily get entrenched in pornography viewing due to its shock value.

Even more tragic is that we all need to keep a closer watch on our kids due to the increasing numbers of sexual predators, sexual stalkers, and pornography recruiters.  Each of these are intensely focused on finding a new victim.