to pleased that something is being done about online porn.

[mootime]

Don't get me wrong, I am not totally anti porn. Each to their own. I have been reading more and more articles about the impact of online porn on our children due to it being so easily accessible and frankly it scares me.

I have nieces who are 18 and 16 and they constantly post pictures of themselves on FB pulling "porn pouts" and basically posing provocatively. I also know that they have been active for a good few years. I know that when I was that age I was no angel (far from it) but I'd seen one porno (by accident at a friends boyfriends house) and was horrified by it. I certainly wouldn't have wanted to be viewed in that way. It seems like its now considered the norm.

I genuinely hope that restricting access makes it less "normal". Its a bit like an online version of having to go to the newsagents to buy it. It doesn't ban it, it just makes it something you deliberately have to access.

[MurderOfGoths]

And if the goct are determined to put the onus on ISPs then they could insist that all ISPs provide their users with filtering software and a help desk to use it.

[MamaMary]

Murder, I can't answer all your questions, especially the technological ones. But my feeling is that someone needs to try SOMETHING. Why the anger when someone has raised an important issue and taken a small step in the right direction?

As for jumping on bandwagon to win votes, I disagree. I certainly wasn't aware of any bandwagon. Have you read the comments on the BBC and Guardian news articles? They are overwhelmingly negative. It's not popular.

Someone on BBC wrote: 'My concern about the opt in requirement is that others will know that I have opted in.' A legitimate concern, but to me it's acknowledging that people like their porn viewing to be a private, secretive, almost shameful thing. If they don't have a problem with it, then why prefer to hide it.

[MamaMary]

All your ideas are good ones, Murder.

[ICBINEG]

This plan is total shit.

More importantly why are teenagers having to look online for information on sex?

If we gave a proper educational version of what sex is they would find it as easy as us to understand how and why porn is different to normal sex.

The answer is not censoring but MORE information on sex made more widely available.

[MurderOfGoths]

Thank you mama :)

I agree something needs to be done, but this isn't it. I think they could use time/money elsewhere to make a real difference. This just seems lazy, and is passing the buck to ISPs.

As for not wanting people to know if you've opted out of the filter? I'm not sure what thread I posted it on, but I had to opt out of filtering to view MN! I shouldn't have to feel ashamed of that, and yet it felt awful and I'm not keen on the fact my account says I wanted to view "adult content".

[MamaMary]

Yes, perhaps I'm in in 'Something must be done' brigade and am too easily pleased. But I agree with the arguments that this is too blunt a solution. My optimism stems from the fact that someone has had the courage to raise it, and it's not popular.

[MurderOfGoths]

I don't think it's courage, AFAIK he's got pressure on him from financial backers, and he's passed the buck. I think it would be far far braver to put real effort into societal change.

[mootime]

mama I am with you basically. Everything you suggest murder is also good. I can see that this is too broad an approach to be totally effective, but it is something.

I just listened to DC on radio2 and he didn't really seem to know exactly what was going to be done/ how it was going to be done etc. However I do think that its a good idea as a starting point that clearly needs a huge amount of refinement.

[MurderOfGoths]

I worry that they'll push this through then hold their hands up and blame ISPs if children are still accessing porn.

[Ixia]

I've never been anti porn or pro censorship. But the one thing that worries me about online porn, is that so much of it is really hardcore and teenagers get the impression that this is normal sex, boys expect to be able to extreme things and their girlfriends are lead to believe that this is what is expected of them.

[MurderOfGoths]

That;s not good is it? Think education is a better answer though. I think there should be more education on consent, how different people like/do different things and not giving in to peer pressure.

[giveitago]

I sometimes access ds's account and go on mumsnet - I'm blocked because there are certain words like 'f'ck etc (mumsnetters are excessive sexual word swearers)and I'm pleased that ds can't access.

[MurderOfGoths]

giveit I'd hate DS to access MN, it's filthy! However it's not porn, and is often very helpful, not something that should be blocked as standard.

[DuelingFanjo]

it's not going to work and David Cameron just made a complete tit of himself on the Jeremy Vine show by saying that there were lots of things that needed to be looked into and sorted out first. Then don't bloody announce that you are going to do this if you don't even know if it's actually going to work - which it isn't - you tosser.

[SolidGoldBrass]

The answer is more and better sex education, not censorship. I am involved at the moment with a group working to improve attitudes towards sex and sexual behaviour - we need to be teaching young people that sex is something mutually enjoyable, and (the group I am linked with's main aim) replacing the idea of 'consent' with an understanding of 'freedom to negotiate' WRT sex.

Going 'Oh goody goody Something's Being Done' is just dim-witted. How much do you trust the current government to get anything right? More to the point, once they have been allowed to censor one aspect of the internet by going 'Look, all this yucky porn Must Be Stopped and if you dont' agree, you're a woman-hating kiddie-fiddler', what's the next thing they are going to decide we don't need to see? How about Occupy sites or advice on resisting benefit sanctions? How soon before those are 'accidentally' made something you have to 'opt into'?

[valiumredhead]

I think it's a great plan and about time.

[MurderOfGoths]

valium WHy? What are the features of this plan that will work?

[Canidae]

But what will it actually block? Just porn videos? Written articles/fiction containing sex? Information about sexual health? Where does it stop?

[clarequilty]

your "nieces basically portray themselves as sex objects" because their parents suck.

[McNewPants2013]

I hope it was also be a ban on adult channels.

I am pretty good on technology and I supervise DC, even if this censorship works I will continue to supervise them.

[MurderOfGoths]

canidae That's the question isn't it?

[Snorbs]

The pre-speech announcements have struck a very blurred line between filtering porn and filtering anything that is not "family friendly". There are an awful lot of things on the Internet that aren't by any means porn but that I would not want my children to access whereas I do. Eg, Mumsnet.

So for those who are pleased by this decision - if Mumsnet was deemed not family-friendly and was therefore blocked unless you (and everyone else who used your broadband connection) opted out of all filtering, what would you do?

[Snorbs]

BTW, did anyone else spot the irony in Cameron calling for automatic blocking of anything not family-friendly while staunchly supporting consumer's rights to look at a pair of tits in The Sun every day?

[MurderOfGoths]

Hahah, no I missed that Snorbs! Ffs, he's beyond a joke isn't he?