Child Pornography

Child pornography is a category of expression that depicts or portrays children engaged in sexual activity. Congress began proscribing child pornography in 1977 with the enactment of the Protection of Children Against Sexual Exploitation Act, which prohibited the production, distribution, and sale of material depicting obscene conduct by minors. Emboldened by the Ferber and Osborne decisions, Congress passed several enactments that strengthened laws prohibiting child pornography. Child Pornography Prevention Act of 1996 banned any sexually explicit image that is "advertised, promoted, presented, described, or distributed in a manner that conveys the impression" that it depicts "a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct". The 1996 act banned sexually explicit images created by what came to be called "virtual- child pornography," because they are produced by techniques such as computer-imaging and use of adults that appear to be minors. Virtual child pornography is not 'intrinsically related' to the sexual abuse of children.".