Some of the photos were disturbing - such as one in which she appeared to have been rolled in clay - but others could just as well have been from a backyard birthday party. The shots showed “Amber” (which is not her real name) in bathing suits, short shorts and skimpy halter tops, but never revealed any genitalia or her breasts. In all instances, the material stopped well short of what is popularly considered child porn. “To me, it borders on pornography and indentured servitude.”Īfter purchasing a membership to “Lil Amber” site, which cost $25 for the first month and $19.95 a month thereafter, reviewed dozens of photos and purchased a videotape for an additional amount to determine how far the site’s creators were willing to go. “I was outraged when I first saw it because it’s being passed off as some career-building opportunity or to apply for college,” he said, referring to statements on several of the sites saying the proceeds will go toward the girls’ college educations.
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“Our site is filled with so many wonderful things that any kid would be happy to see and browse through,” said the respondent, who signed her e-mail as “Mommy.” “Why are you stuck on the few photos we have of her in her custom-made clothing? Have you seen the great updates where she shows you how to make an excellent salmon dish using only tinfoil to bake it with? What about the very fun and informative software reviews that took her months to put together? Any her Yoga video/pics!?” Furthermore, she said, the media are focusing only on the revealing outfits and missing the other material on the site geared to appeal to other kids. “No one here is going to talk about it anymore,” said a man who answered the phone at Webe Web’s offices but declined to give his name.īut in an e-mail conversation between and an individual who says she is the mother of another pre-teen model known as “Jessi the Kid,” the respondent said the site was created to help her daughter fulfill her dream of becoming an actress and was no more racy than ads for fashion lines such as Benetton that appear every day in national publications. But after a rash of bad publicity - including an investigation by NBC’s Miami affiliate, WTVJ/NBC 6, that revealed many previously unreported details about “Amber,” her family and the company - they are no longer doing so. Officials at Webe Web Inc., the Davie, Fla., Web-hosting company behind a half-dozen pre-teen “model” sites, including “Lil Amber,” have previously denied that the sites cater to pedophiles or constitute child pornography. “It’s not against the law, but it’s exciting and stimulating and arousing for people with a certain deviant interest.” “This is legal child porn,” said Ken Lanning, a retired FBI agent who studied deviant sexual behavior during most of his 30 years with the bureau. Many - if not most - customers are sexually interested in children, and some are pedophiles, according to law enforcement officials and children’s advocates. There is ample evidence that the sites, which sell photos and videotapes to members, cater primarily to adults, very few of whom are in the market to hire models.
“Lil Amber,” the site that touched a raw nerve for Foley, is one of dozens of preteen “model” sites that have popped up on the Internet over the last few years. Foley also asked a House Judiciary subcommittee to hold hearings on the subject, which would allow parents of the girls and the Web site operators to be subpoenaed. Foley, R-Fla., was informed by the Justice Department earlier this month that, at his request, it had instructed the FBI to review the pre-teen sites in order to determine whether they are breaking any laws.
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