We just received this comment from Jenn regarding the topic of children being exposed to sexually explicit material on Goodreads.
The group that Carroll mentioned is not the only one that I have seen. Every time I go on Goodreads to check out new comments in my local book group, I can also see which groups have been most active recently. I saw one about role play, and got curious. So I clicked, and started reading some of the stories. They are horribly written, but I was disturbed by the intensity of it all. For the particular story I skimmed through, one of the players would start getting worked up if the other did not respond almost immediately. *shudders*
I logged on to my Goodreads just now to see what would “pop up” (sorry, couldn’t help myself) under the recent groups, and there is this one:
http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/61746-smitten-boudoir-role-play
It can say Adults Only all it wants, but people can easily lie about their ages on these things. And their sex, and tons of other things.
…
And here is another:
So, we went over to these groups and after recovering from our initial shock, took a few screenshots this morning. Because of their sexually graphic nature, we will only publish links to the shots (of course you can always click on the links above to see the images as well).
Please note that the group, Sexual Roleplay, does say that it is for adults only, but it’s also a public group and anyone can join. Jenn is right when she says that any kid can create an account on GR and lie about their age. Unless they get caught by their parents, who’s going to know? As for Smitten Boudoir Role-Play, here are the rules and they say nothing about age.
When we get a chance later on today, we will be collecting more information on these groups to share with our readers. Anyone is welcome to copy this particular material from our blog and share it with others. We told Carroll we would help him anyway we can with his new blog. Others are welcome to as well. We want the word to get out that this material is just sitting out there on GR in the open, waiting for kids to stumble upon it and Goodreads is doing nothing to stop it.
it seems to be goodreads is not the appropriate outlet for these kinds of groups and activities…
also, should I be able to view these groups without even joining? that means anyone can, even teens and children…
Let us not forget that this isn’t just kids RPing with kids and adults RPing with adults, but there are adults RPing with kids. And there are cases where the kid’s age is posted on their profiles yet, they are still not being monitored. And there are adults and kids mixed into these groups, that in itself is a very dangerous mix.
@ Peter – most groups are public. You do not have to join to view the content. Others are private. Those are the ones you would have to join to view what they are posting.
The hypocrisy of all this is that Good Reads has erased legitimate fan groups where the books being discussed were racy but no role play was being done. These groups were also age protected.
While I too think the public groups doing this role play stuff is a bit disturbing I don’t think those that have age restrictions fall into the same category.
There are adult themed groups on GR that are vital to some genres and the writers of those genres. There is no role play on them but at the same time there are very adult topics being discussed. It’s pretty much impossible for Good Reads to police the groups. If moderators are putting an age minimum up and stating that it’s an adult board, they have pretty much done their job. While I agree there is a lot that Good Reads needs to be doing, in a situation like this, the one who is ultimately responsible is the parent.
That’s a good point. But how many parents are actually doing that? And how many kids are getting into these groups behind their parents’ back? Yes, I agree that parents need to monitor their kids, but the moderators of these groups need to pay close attention, too. These groups are too much of a temptation for online sexual predators and pedophiles, imo.
I think erotic books and their discussions and sexually explicit role-playing between adults and children are “apples and oranges’. One has to do with literature while the other … has kids “interacting” with adults in sexually explciit conversation. If I were to talk face to face with a child the way they RP, I would be arrested. Not to mention, what does it say about these adults who participate with these kids in these RP’s? It’s quite disturbing.
No offense, “Lost In Translation”, but Goodreads CAN do better. They just choose not to. And I have a very disturbing comment which was made on a blog where the “Anon” claimed to be a moderator for one of these groups and what he/she says in their comment, is equally disturbing. But that comment will be posted in my report.
Apples versus oranges.
“I think erotic books and their discussions and sexually explicit role-playing between adults and children are “apples and oranges’.”
I agree. What does role-playing have to do with books and literature? Isn’t that what Goodreads is supposed to be all about?
It has nothing to do with books and book reviews. The point Carroll makes is valid. There is a difference between the two types of groups. The sexual role playing between an adult and a kid is not the same thing as a group reading and discussing a racy book
There are writer groups where more than a discussion of books is done. While it’s not role play,
questions about sex, positions, methods, experiences are talked about. Pictures are used for visual
reference. Very explicit discussions take place. Erotic romance writers need
these forums so that they can keep their works realistic. I guarantee you these legitimate groups will be
purged too just on principle. I still think something should be done about the inappropriate role play only
I’m not sure what can be done. At least realistically.
And again I agree—adults that knowingly converse with children in sexual role play are disturbed individuals.
Oh I agree the roll playing is wrong between adults and children. The sad thing is the only action that will be taken is to shut down any and everything that is adult and even that isn’t fool proof. Sorry I didn’t make that clear in my post.
I do think it’s the parents’ responsibility first and foremost. Letting kids on the internet unsupervised is no different than letting them run the streets unsupervised. The dangers are the same and if parents don’t want that responsibility they shouldn’t have children.
I also agree with another poster (sorry forgot your name) that the moderators should try to make an effort to screen, but again they are not God and kids are really tricky. Dummy accounts, aliases and the like are often used by underage individuals. Just like fake IDs are used to get them in where they don’t belong.
Honestly (and sadly) the only way to insure this doesn’t happen is to remove all the forums on Good Reads. Otherwise the potential will always be there.
In case you haven’t heard. GoodReads released an update last night that requires anyone who is a member of an age restricted group to have a birth date in their profile. I guess they got wind of that last blog entry.
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1190799-new-groups-that-are-18-now-require-your-birthdate-added-on-your-profil
Oh yeah, cause ya know that’s really going to stop kids from getting in. What a brilliant idea! It’s good to know goodreads is on top of these things.
That’s good and all, but doesn’t really have anything to do with my article. You’ll see why when it’s published. (We’re just hours away)