INHOPE has launched the campaign "Shaping the Story" on 15 February 2022, as part of a series of Safer Internet Day activites where they cover the areas of Privacy, Language, and Narrative in reporting stories of child sexual abuse (CSA) and child sexual abuse material (CSAM).

Reporting about child sexual abuse should empower survivors to report abuse while raising awareness of the problem among the general public. However, there is a persistent taboo surrounding the topic, and its portrayal in media outlets tends to emphasise the horror of the acts instead of highlighting the importance of online safety to children and young people, and their parents and carers.

For this reason, INHOPE has created a guide for media outlets and control standards to ensure that CSAM reports follow best practises set by child protection organisations. The aim is to promote the application of the guidelines around the world while maintaining the vital reporting needed to spread the word and increase public awareness on CSAM online. 

Access and download the media guidelines for reporting on Child Sexual Abuse on the INHOPE website.

Find more information about the "Shaping the Story" campaign on the INHOPE website.

Come back often to this webpage to see more content related to the campaign:

• Child Sexual Abuse Material vs Child Porn: read more about the use of porn as a term relating to CSAM in the article.
• Survivor vs Victim: the individual's right to determine how they want to be portrayed when reporting on CSA is paramount.
• An individual's right to privacy vs public record: some details, if reported, might put the victim in a more harmful situation, as certain details are not really needed in a story.
• A balanced story vs victim blaming: read more about victim blaming and the importance of carefully choosing your words to avoid swaying an audience with bias against the victim.
• Sensitive vs Sensationalist addresses how the story needs to respect the crime that was committed and that it's not just about “click bait”.
• Individual or Societal Issue: read more about how isolating individual stories takes away from the ability to address a larger societal issue in the article.
• Attributing responsibility: this article re-enforces the importance of always placing the blame on the perpetrator and that the child is never responsible.
• Sexual vs Factual: when reporting cases of child sexual abuse (CSA) and child sexual abuse material (CSAM), ask yourself if certain details are rather helpful or harmful.
• Tackling Stereotypes: this article references how the perpetrator can be anyone and not to type cast individuals.
• Thematic vs Episodic storytelling: read more about how the media normally covers stories of abuse and how the focus is on stand-alone examples without giving a thematic, broader context of issues.
• Promoting Prevention instead of Fear: this article explains the importance of supplementing reports and other materials with sources and objective explanations to help readers form a clearer picture of how and why children are suffering, and how adults can help.

Jointly, INHOPE and European Schoolnet (EUN) coordinate the network of Safer Internet Centres (SICs) in Europe. INHOPE focuses on member hotline activities dedicated to the removal of illegal content online, specifically CSAM. EUN coordinates the Insafe network of awareness raising, helpline and youth participation.

Find more information on the work and activities of the Insafe and INHOPE network of Safer Internet Centres (SICs) on the Better Internet for Kids (BIK) portal. You can discover more resources and online safety tips in the resource repository of the BIK portal.