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Outlawing Revenge Porn: How Congress Can Protect Privacy and Reduce Online Harassment

Abuse exists in many forms on the Internet. While many malicious online activities are considered crimes, the distribution of sexually explicit images without the subjects' consent—commonly referred to as “revenge porn”—continues to exist in a legal gray area throughout much of the United States. Although 35 states have passed some form of legislation criminalizing these acts, 15 states have yet to take any action against such abuse. Revenge porn can have dramatic consequences for victims, damaging their reputations and job prospects, subjecting them to threats, and intimidating them into silence. Because there is no national legal recourse, victims are often unable to stop the spread of images or take action against the perpetrator.

ITIF held a panel discussion about how policymakers can criminalize revenge porn, while protecting free speech on the Internet. Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA), who introduced the Intimate Privacy Protection Act, began the event with the reminder that “the Internet is not the same place for everyone.” In her opening remarks, she noted that despite the high profiles of some victims—such as actor Leslie Jones, whose recent online abuse ranged from verbal attacks to the nonconsensual posting of private, sexual images—more needs to be done to promote awareness of this pernicious problem. As she reminded those present, “the same technology that gives us numerous ways to improve our lives also gives us numerous ways to destroy it.” One such sobering fact is that more than half of victims of nonconsensual pornography report having suicidal thoughts, and too many do take their own lives. After two years of tireless work on the Intimate Privacy Protection Act, Rep. Speier believes that the bipartisan bill will withstand congressional scrutiny, and that it can both protect peoples’ privacy while also protecting free speech.

The panelists widely agreed that the current state patchwork of legislation does not provide sufficient protection for the victims of nonconsensual pornography and that a federal law is the best way to help victims see their attackers punished, deter future abusers, more effectively remove these images from the Internet, and make both victims and bystanders feel safe to express themselves freely.

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Democratic National Convention Policy Forum

The conversation was high-spirited and wide-ranging, covering topics from trade and tax policy, to infrastructure, to broadband access, to education. In opening the panel with a discussion of trade, Senator Chris Coons (D-DE) described how the United States is competing with the world, and he honed in on the importance of connecting with the average American on the need for policies that encourage both the invention and manufacturing of products on U.S. soil. Representative Derek Kilmer (D-WA) echoed this sentiment, describing a poster that his business once had reading, “we are competing with everyone, everywhere, every day, forever.” Although that is an intimidating idea, he said he believes this doesn’t just apply to businesses, but also to the country, and that Congress should be mindful of global competition when creating technology and innovation policies in the future. Panelists agreed that the economic policies and development of the nations with which the United States competes should not be taken lightly.

Overall, the panelists also agreed that there was a need to more clearly articulate the message that tech innovation is important to all parts of the nation, not just tech hubs like Silicon Valley. Representative Suzan DelBene (D-WA) argued that educating lawmakers on technology and innovation issues is just as important as educating the workforce itself, because the hesitancy seen on certain policy matters is a result of the policymakers not fully understanding the concepts and therefore being unsure of how to move forward. The senior vice president and general counsel for Amazon, David Zapolsky, stressed the importance of continuing to communicate in order to better foster engagement from the consumer as well as the policymaker.

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A Trillion-Dollar Opportunity: How Brain Research Can Drive Health and Prosperity

At an event to discuss the report’s findings and current brain disorder research and policy, the co-authors, Robert Atkinson and Adams Nager, emphasized the potential for significant economic savings over the long term, as well as relieving human suffering. Innovation by definition means uncertainty, but the risks associated with such research should not be dismissed simply because the answers are unknown.

Kristin Kahle Wrobleski, Ph.D., the director for Alzheimer’s and Neurodegenerative Diseases at Eli Lilly and Company, presented current research on Alzheimer’s in order to underscore the need for additional research and development funding, as well as to emphasize the very real costs currently experienced by people and families affected by that disease. Medical professionals’ ultimate goal is to be able to intervene when these diseases first take hold, but currently they are only able to treat the symptoms rather than eliminate or lessen the causes. Although there is significant unmet need, Dr. Wrobleski and her colleagues want to focus on the innovative efforts to treat these diseases and other brain conditions and illnesses. Even if tangible results may not be seen until future generations, enabling these policy changes now will help provide the incremental improvements in scientific understanding and therapy implementation that will be essential for eventually creating treatments and cures.

Andrew Sperling, the director of federal legislative advocacy at the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), praised the report’s detailed look at the lost productivity experienced in the U.S. workforce as a result of the severity, prevalence, and longevity of these diseases. Innovation, he pointed out, is a multi-faceted enterprise that benefits from collaboration between public and private sectors which give scientists and health-care providers the information and tools that they need to look past symptoms and understand root causes. Both Dr. Wrobleski and Sperling noted that the possibility of failure is an integral part of research, and so any policymakers must be willing to cover the cost of failure as an essential part of pursuing innovative new treatments and diagnoses.

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5G: What's Next In Wireless

At an event to discuss the report and 5G technology, there was broad agreement among the panelists that the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) leadership on opening up spectrum in the United States has been exemplary, with the FCC moving much faster than expected. Charla Rath, vice president for wireless policy development at Verizon, applauded the FCC’s emphasis on the flexible use of the new spectrum, which will allow industry to move forward more quickly in the United States.

Peter Pitsch, executive director of communications policy and associate general counsel for Intel, and Dean R. Brenner, senior vice president for government affairs at Qualcomm, both noted the need not only for high-band spectrum, but also low- and medium-band spectrum, in order to provide as much varied coverage as possible. The FCC’s commitment to making licenses available in a flexible and investment-friendly way, while requiring only modest technical specifications, will be key to the success of 5G, Pitsch stated.

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When Maryann was 7, she was cast in the melting scene of The Wizard of Oz as “The Littlest Witch.” One by one the other Wicked Witches would melt, out she’d pop, and the crowd would go wild.

She loved it. She loved having her face painted green, she loved the applause, she loved clawing at the air in fake but emphatic agony. Later, she told us that the villains in stories were always her favorites. She had been the Wicked Witch, after all.

But as she got older, her statements became darker and darker. The next time we met, we were 13, and her father had to follow us around the mall. He said it was just to make sure “nothing happened.” I thought it was weird.

Maryann was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and then with dissociative identity disorder. Like the five little witches in The Wizard of Oz, Maryann had multiple personalities running around in her head. And some of them were wicked.

Almost 1 in 5 Americans suffer from mental illnesses each year, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The National Institute of Mental Health says that almost 7% of the US population suffers from depression, and 18% of American adults experience effects from an anxiety disorder each year. The World Health Organization says that depression is the largest cause of disability worldwide.

Yet there is a huge stigma surrounding mental illnesses. If it’s only in your head, they say, then it can’t be real. But the effects of such illnesses are very real.

Thanks to this societal prejudice, many mentally ill people remain untreated. In far too many cases, their illness leads them to commit suicide. Each suicide intimately affects at least 6 other people. According to SAVE-dot-org, on average, every 16 minutes someone commits suicide.

While we have been sitting here tonight, at least 5 people have committed suicide.

We can do so much more to treat mental illnesses. We can research them. We can nurture understanding about them. We can prevent them. But we need to dedicate the time and money to do so. For our friends. For our families. For our children, and their children. For our country. For our future.

The Brain and Behavior Research Foundation funds work for these debilitating illnesses. Since 1987, they have awarded more than 365 million dollars to fund more than 4 thousand scientists’ research and work around the world.

One recent grant helped Dr. Lisa Pan at the University of Pittsburg discover that more than 60% of patients with treatment-resistant depression were deficient in a specific neurotransmitter. These kinds of results are vital for shedding light on the darkest, most complicated corners of the brain. For creating better treatments. For saving lives.

Please consider leaving a donation to the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation. Their newsletter sign up is at the door. Every dollar you spend and every minute you spare could save dozens of people. You never know when you might become one of those 6 affected others. You never know when the little witches in your own head could come out to play.

My enduring memory of Maryann is of her in a witch’s costume and green face paint, red hair shining in the stage lights. It wasn’t until many years later that I realized why Maryann's father came with us to the mall: To make sure she didn’t hurt herself.

Thanks to early diagnosis and treatment, Maryann was not a victim of her disorders. She is a survivor.

The Brain and Behavior Research Foundation thrives on the hope that one day, we will only have survivors.