If you didn’t already know, Fight the New Drug (FTND) is a non-religious and non-legislative nonprofit that exists to provide individuals the opportunity to make an informed decision regarding pornography by raising awareness of its harmful effects using only science, facts, and personal accounts.
We create resources to educate about porn’s impacts, but what impact have these resources actually had? Are people actually learning about the harmful effects of porn when they read our articles, watch our documentary series, see our social media posts, listen to our podcast, and engage with our content?
Comparing Fight the New Drug followers versus the general public, who understands the research better?
We tested 2,500 people—about 1,000 Fight the New Drug (FTND) followers and about 1,500 general public respondents—to see how well they understood the potential effects of porn, as shown in research. Here’s what we found:
Most people in the general public seem to be unaware or misinformed about porn’s effects.
The average score in the general public sample was only 45%. In other words, the average person can’t even answer half of the questions about porn’s effects correctly.
Plus, only 10% of the general public received a “passing” score of 70% or above.
Click here to read the full impact report.
FTND followers tend to be very well-educated on the potential effects of porn.
When questioned about the credible research on porn’s impacts, the average score of FTND followers was 86%—nearly double the average score of the general public.
Not only that, but none scored below 50%, and 1 in 4 scored above 90%.
Scores show actual knowledge, not just shared perspective.
Now maybe you’re thinking FTND followers just scored higher because they already agree that porn is harmful. But respondents in the general population who agreed that porn is harmful still had similarly low scores as the rest of the general population.
This shows that FTND followers’ higher scores reflect more than just agreement.
FTND followers score well, regardless of why they’re a Fighter.
People follow FTND for a variety of reasons—some are trying to quit porn, some have been hurt by a partner’s habit, others are educators or activists, etc.
Regardless of their reasons, all groups of FTND followers scored equally high on the test.
FTND followers score well, regardless of age or education level.
There was only a 9% difference between scores of FTND followers with only some high school education and those with a graduate degree.
Even FTND followers with only some high school education still scored 33% higher than the general public on average.
FTND followers better understand the harms of porn and shame.
Some critics argue that raising awareness of porn’s harms is counterproductive because it shames consumers. But these survey results show that FTND followers are actually better educated on the harms of shame and its connections to fueling porn habits than the general public.
Informed decisions can’t happen without quality information. That’s why we’re proud to say that we are effectively educating people on porn’s risks using science, facts, and personal accounts.
Click here to read the full impact report.
Your Support Matters Now More Than Ever
Most kids today are exposed to porn by the age of 12. By the time they’re teenagers, 75% of boys and 70% of girls have already viewed itRobb, M.B., & Mann, S. (2023). Teens and pornography. San Francisco, CA: Common Sense.Copy —often before they’ve had a single healthy conversation about it.
Even more concerning: over half of boys and nearly 40% of girls believe porn is a realistic depiction of sexMartellozzo, E., Monaghan, A., Adler, J. R., Davidson, J., Leyva, R., & Horvath, M. A. H. (2016). “I wasn’t sure it was normal to watch it”: A quantitative and qualitative examination of the impact of online pornography on the values, attitudes, beliefs and behaviours of children and young people. Middlesex University, NSPCC, & Office of the Children’s Commissioner.Copy . And among teens who have seen porn, more than 79% of teens use it to learn how to have sexRobb, M.B., & Mann, S. (2023). Teens and pornography. San Francisco, CA: Common Sense.Copy . That means millions of young people are getting sex ed from violent, degrading content, which becomes their baseline understanding of intimacy. Out of the most popular porn, 33%-88% of videos contain physical aggression and nonconsensual violence-related themesFritz, N., Malic, V., Paul, B., & Zhou, Y. (2020). A descriptive analysis of the types, targets, and relative frequency of aggression in mainstream pornography. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 49(8), 3041-3053. doi:10.1007/s10508-020-01773-0Copy Bridges et al., 2010, “Aggression and Sexual Behavior in Best-Selling Pornography Videos: A Content Analysis,” Violence Against Women.Copy .
From increasing rates of loneliness, depression, and self-doubt, to distorted views of sex, reduced relationship satisfaction, and riskier sexual behavior among teens, porn is impacting individuals, relationships, and society worldwideFight the New Drug. (2024, May). Get the Facts (Series of web articles). Fight the New Drug.Copy .
This is why Fight the New Drug exists—but we can’t do it without you.
Your donation directly fuels the creation of new educational resources, including our awareness-raising videos, podcasts, research-driven articles, engaging school presentations, and digital tools that reach youth where they are: online and in school. It equips individuals, parents, educators, and youth with trustworthy resources to start the conversation.
Will you join us? We’re grateful for whatever you can give—but a recurring donation makes the biggest difference. Every dollar directly supports our vital work, and every individual we reach decreases sexual exploitation. Let’s fight for real love: