Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

National Center on Sexual Exploitation Exposes School Educational Database Company Providing K-12 Students with Pornography

  • 06/29/17

Washington, D.C., (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — EBSCO Information Services, the largest U.S. online library database subscription for K-12 schools, has come under fire from the National Center on Sexual Exploitation for exposingchildren to pornographic and sexually graphic content in their educational products. Though EBSCO has worked with NCOSE to clean up their systems, the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) uncovered on-going systemic problems this week that should concern all parents.

“Children have been exposed to pornographic and sexually graphic content in public and private schools providing EBSCO services,” said Dawn Hawkins, Executive Director of the National Center on Sexual Exploitation. “This company markets itself as providing curriculum-appropriate educational resources, and so it is trusted by parents and teachers, but we’ve found its databases contain graphic results for elementary, middle, and high school users regarding pornography, as well as group, anal, public, and BDSM sex.

EBSCO has been in communication with NCOSE for several months in an effort to solve these problems, and has implemented many positive changes like removing certain publications and fixing some publisher settings.  However, Hawkins notes the problems are so widespread within the company’s systems that much more work is needed until the parents of America will be satisfied that their children can be free of sexually explicit material on schools-based educational databases.

Just this week, researchers from the National Center found 50 sexually graphic articles in 50 minutes and many of them from databases intended for middle and elementary school children,” Hawkins continued. “What parent can be satisfied with that?” she said.

“EBSCO has made significant improvements to the system and we applaud that, but parents and schools need to know that EBSCO systems are free from sexually exploitive materials or they will discontinue using EBSCO products. “Concerned parents can learn how to take action by accessing NCOSE’s packet 'The ABCs vs XXX: How to Ensure Your School’s Online Library Databases are Pornography Free.'"

To watch NCOSE’s video reviewing examples of content found on EBSCO on June 26th, watch this video.

EBSCO is a member of the National Center on Sexual Exploitation’s 2017 Dirty Dozen List, which names 12 mainstream contributors to sexual exploitation. To learn more visit: endsexualexploitation.org/ebsco.

Featured

  • Indiana University Launches Capital Campus in D.C.

    Indiana University recently held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new IU Capital Campus in Washington, D.C., according to university news. The eight-story facility will provide a central hub for the university’s existing programs and business operations based in D.C., uniting them under one roof and providing the opportunity to expand.

  • S4L Announces 2026 Education Design Showcase Winners

    Spaces4Learning is thrilled to announce the winners of the 2026 Education Design Showcase! Now in its 27th year, the annual awards program honors innovative solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction across K–12 and higher education.

  • Campus Safety Requires Using Every Resource Available

    Across the U.S., school and campus leaders are facing a security landscape that has changed dramatically over the past decade. Incidents on school property have increased in recent years, with several consecutive years setting record totals. According to analysis of data by CNN, dozens of shootings now occur on school grounds annually across K-12 and higher education environments.

  • Phoenix School District Breaks Ground on New Prep Academy

    The Creighton Elementary School District near Phoenix, Ariz., recently broke ground on a campus replacement for Biltmore Preparatory Academy, according to a news release. The new space will allow the school to expand its enrollment by 50 percent for K–8 students and accommodate modern, collaborative learning styles.