Ron and Tina Meier didn’t immediately consider the Internet as a factor when their 13-year-old Megan died, as they weren’t aware that she had created a MySpace profile with Playboy bunnies and flashing skulls as profile pictures; or that she made multiple calls to New York to visit an acquaintance she met online; nor were they aware that her older sister paid the phone bills which listed Josh Evans on them as Megan’s phone carrier.
After Megan died, her family became immersed in a culture of sexual exploitation. According to the article that follows, this was no limited to sex-room camcorders or virtual worlds like Chaturbate; rather it pervaded every aspect of everyday activities – people feeling trapped by low wages jobs as caretakers for an ill relative or parent, finding new and lucrative ways of expressing themselves through technology – ultimately it could threaten traditional economies like affluent America altogether if allowed to flourish.
Max and Harper may appear on Chaturbate and appear dissatisfied, however. Some might argue that sex should take place within private settings with clean sheets, clearly identified partners and closed doors; that it’s more authentic to perform intimate relationships behind closed doors; that it is more dignified if not shared publicly – that the Web should not be the place for such experiences. But after spending enough time on Chaturbate this viewpoint becomes less clear-cut: volunteers act like Wikipedia moderators in reporting and shutting down performers who deviate from its few rules.