Social Media, Porn, Artificial Intelligence: The New Faces of Trafficking
Gail Dines, PhD & Mandy Sanchez, PhD | September 18 | 1:45-2:45 pm EDT
Topic: Conceptual, Programming | Knowledge Level: Beginner
While sex trafficking and porn have both been defined as forms of sexual violence, rooted in a system of gender inequality, what is often overlooked is the way these two industries are culturally, technologically, and economically linked. In the first part of this session, the presenters will explore how porn acts as both a method of recruitment into trafficking, and a major driver of demand. They will provide examples of how social media platforms are fueling sexual exploitation and prostitution, from the exchange of sexual currency in live streams to the grooming and recruitment of young people into prostitution and sex trafficking. In the second part of the session, they will discuss how the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is greatly magnifying the quantity, scope, accessibility, and harms of pornography. They will discuss how traffickers use AI to target, recruit, exploit, and abuse victims, and how sextortion has become a gateway to trafficking. AI now makes it possible for any person of any age to easily create porn - and to be victimized by porn. There are thousands of easy-to-find nudifying apps and websites – that anyone is now a potential victim. And with a few keystrokes, any person can easily become a perpetrator. Finally, they will conclude with how Culture Reframed, through a public health approach, assists parents and professionals who work with young people in navigating the treacherous terrain of social media, pornography, AI, and trafficking.
Presentation Objectives:
• Discuss how the pornography and sex trafficking industries are culturally, technologically, and economically linked
• Discuss how pornography acts as both a method of recruitment into trafficking and a major driver of demand
• Describe how social media platforms fuel sexual exploitation and trafficking and the harms this causes
• Present the different types of AI pornography that are used by traffickers to target, recruit, exploit, and abuse victims
• Present practical advice for how to build resilience and resistance in young people to porn and protect against the dangers of sextortion and trafficking