[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/dangers-of-social-media-use-for-teens-and-what-should-be-done\/#NewsArticle","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/dangers-of-social-media-use-for-teens-and-what-should-be-done\/","headline":"Dangers of social media use for teens and what should be done","name":"Dangers of social media use for teens and what should be done","description":"Our five guests react to InstaSex, an investigative story by The Straits Times that examines the challenges and sexual threats faced by young girls online. We hear from Vanessa Ng, who runs the account @upand.out on Instagram, which offers sex-education for the masses; Hope Tay, one-half of the self-help podcast @Mentaldumbbells that chronicles issues facing […]","datePublished":"2021-06-14","dateModified":"2022-04-16","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/author\/Jia%20Xin%20Gan\/#Person","name":"Jia Xin Gan","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/author\/Jia%20Xin%20Gan\/","identifier":329,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d72dfdef589d4a1f38c564a710e331df0007b449053e5eee9d1ce9a08422663e?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d72dfdef589d4a1f38c564a710e331df0007b449053e5eee9d1ce9a08422663e?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"TheHomeGround Asia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2021-07-22-222533.jpeg","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2021-07-22-222533.jpeg","width":640,"height":640}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/1623637826827_Beyond_Within_-_EP_5_28Sexual_assault_in_Singapore29_281280x62629.jpg","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/1623637826827_Beyond_Within_-_EP_5_28Sexual_assault_in_Singapore29_281280x62629.jpg","height":626,"width":1280},"url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/dangers-of-social-media-use-for-teens-and-what-should-be-done\/","video":{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"VideoObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=-_3KXoG03ao#VideoObject","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=-_3KXoG03ao","name":"ST's CloseUp team delves into social media's sexualised world | THE BIG STORY","description":"We speak to the team behind The Straits Times' new investigative CloseUp, which premiered last week. Its first episode explores the sexualised world of social media.\n\nWatch CloseUp's InstaSex episode: https:\/\/youtu.be\/U45CqOKFmBE\n\nWatch the full episode of The Big Story: https:\/\/youtu.be\/vIcK1NEHmto\n--------------------\nSUBSCRIBE \u27a4 http:\/\/bit.ly\/FollowST\n--------------------\nWEBSITE \u27a4 http:\/\/www.straitstimes.com\nTWITTER \u27a4 https:\/\/twitter.com\/straits_times\nFACEBOOK \u27a4 https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/TheStraitsTimes\nINSTAGRAM \u27a4 https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/straits_times\nPODCASTS \u27a4 http:\/\/str.sg\/stpodcasts\nTELEGRAM \u27a4 https:\/\/t.me\/straitstimes\n\nThe Straits Times, the English flagship daily of SPH, has been serving readers for more than a century. Launched on July 15, 1845, its comprehensive coverage of world news, East Asian news, Southeast Asian news, home news, sports news, financial news and lifestyle updates makes The Straits Times the most-read newspaper in Singapore.\n\n#thebigstory #stcloseup #socialmedia","thumbnailUrl":["https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/-_3KXoG03ao\/default.jpg","https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/-_3KXoG03ao\/mqdefault.jpg","https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/-_3KXoG03ao\/hqdefault.jpg","https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/-_3KXoG03ao\/sddefault.jpg","https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/-_3KXoG03ao\/maxresdefault.jpg"],"uploadDate":"2021-02-09T10:53:46+00:00","duration":"PT8M6S","embedUrl":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/-_3KXoG03ao","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UC4p_I9eiRewn2KoU-nawrDg#Organization","url":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UC4p_I9eiRewn2KoU-nawrDg","name":"The Straits Times","description":"Subscribe to The Straits Times\u2019 official YouTube channel.\n\nThe latest news and features from Singapore, Asia and beyond produced by The Straits Times.\n\nThe Straits Times, the English flagship daily of SPH Media, has been serving readers for over a century. Launched on July 15, 1845, its comprehensive coverage of local, regional and world news \u2014 from politics, business to sports and lifestyle \u2014 has made The Straits Times the most-read newspaper in Singapore.\n\nRead our community guidelines here: https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/post\/UgympW0LmFVW8HWcnVR4AaABCQ\n\nWEBSITE \u27a4 https:\/\/www.straitstimes.com\nWHATSAPP \u27a4 http:\/\/str.sg\/whatsapp\nTIKTOK  \u27a4 https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@straitstimes\nINSTAGRAM \u27a4 https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/straits_times\nFACEBOOK \u27a4 https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/TheStraitsTimes\nTWITTER \u27a4 https:\/\/twitter.com\/straits_times\nTELEGRAM \u27a4 https:\/\/t.me\/TheStraitsTimes\nPODCASTS \u27a4 https:\/\/str.sg\/stpodcasts\n","logo":{"url":"https:\/\/yt3.ggpht.com\/ytc\/AIdro_ldr-Sqf6ceT8nOEA2akHeCKJe8zMqWWdBSlPjWD8iIZUk=s800-c-k-c0x00ffffff-no-rj","width":800,"height":800,"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=-_3KXoG03ao#VideoObject_publisher_logo_ImageObject"}},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=-_3KXoG03ao#VideoObject_potentialAction","target":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=-_3KXoG03ao&t={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"},"interactionStatistic":[[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=-_3KXoG03ao#VideoObject_interactionStatistic_WatchAction","interactionType":{"@type":"WatchAction"},"userInteractionCount":10162}],{"@type":"InteractionCounter","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=-_3KXoG03ao#VideoObject_interactionStatistic_LikeAction","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":23}]},"about":["Community","Local","Sex & Gender","Singapore"],"wordCount":433,"articleBody":"Our five guests react to InstaSex, an investigative story by The Straits Times that examines the challenges and sexual threats faced by young girls online.We hear from Vanessa Ng, who runs the account @upand.out on Instagram, which offers sex-education for the masses; Hope Tay, one-half of the self-help podcast @Mentaldumbbells that chronicles issues facing growing adults; Haikel Fahim, founder and host of The Ironing Board Podcast, where he opens discussion around various social issues; entrepreneur Annie Chan; and Dr Simon Neo, a psychotherapist.Here are some of the key points brought up in this episode:People’s choice to post what they want\u00a0Even if individuals wanted to show more skin online, \u201cthere is nothing that these girls did, or do, to warrant this kind of abuse,\u201d Vanessa Ng says solemnly.Annie Chan echoes the same sentiment: \u201cWhether I post a sexy photograph of myself, it is my prerogative.\u201dNevertheless, this simple truth does not deter some men from sexually harassing girls and women they come across online, often with long-lasting mental and emotional repercussions.Enduring consequences of social media sexual abuse\u00a0Mental health issues following sexual assault has long-term consequences for both victims and their family.Dr Simon Neo highlights that the scars linger often not only for the individuals but for the whole family. Often these cases are so serious that professional intervention and therapy is needed.Haikel Fahim similarly shares his concern that victims would often take years to fully overcome the assault: \u201cPerhaps it will stay with these people for the entirety of their life.\u201dProtecting the young from abusive behaviour\u00a0For Ms Chan who is concerned that her teen nieces and nephews would also experience the same harm online, she advises them to \u201cbe more mindful\u201d and \u201cdo what is needful\u201d to protect themselves, such as not sharing suggestive photographs to reduce the chances of pictures being sexually misappropriated.For individuals who have been sexually violated, she suggests raising the matter to their family or school, so that perpetrators do not get away with their actions.Ms Ng thinks that educating girls and boys \u201crepeatedly from young\u201d on the appropriate boundaries of online behaviour is essential. For instance, it is wrong to zoom in on one part of the body, and no one should recirculate nudes sent in trust.Falsely holding girls accountable for others\u2019 actions also teaches the wrong lesson that the victims, instead of perpetrators, are at fault, when they have been sexually abused on- or offline.Join the conversations on TheHomeGround Asia’s\u00a0Facebook\u00a0and\u00a0Instagram, and get the latest updates via\u00a0Telegram."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Destinations","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Singapore","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/\/singapore\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Dangers of social media use for teens and what should be done","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/dangers-of-social-media-use-for-teens-and-what-should-be-done\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]