April 11, 2028—The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy has released a new study showing an alarming rise in teen pregnancies occurring in virtual worlds.
The organization’s latest statistics, released this morning show that real-world teen pregnancies have reached an all-time low, but that pregnancy rates among teen avatars are up 50% compared with a year ago at this time.
“We’ve succeeded in educating our youth about the dangers of unprotected sex in the real world,” said NCPTP Director Betty Buss. “But it appears that teens are simply going online to get pregnant. We need to be doing more to teach young avatars about safe sex practices when they’re logged on. I am strongly advocating the widespread distribution of computerized condoms on Second Life and other virtual environments.”
Sandra Cooper, spokeswoman for The New Moral Majority, assailed Buss’ proposal for condom distribution. She said teen avatars should be taught about the benefits of abstinence and the risks of pre-marital cybersex.
The NCPTP report marks the latest outcry over what many believe to be an epidemic of kids having kids online. Last year, more than 30,000 virtual babies were born in Second Life alone, NCPTP said.
