There is no getting around it – sex work in the 2020’s is booming. From the meteoric rise of Only Fans, the popularity of Sugar Daddy-style dating apps, the proliferation of porn and webcamming, and young people utilising the power of the internet and social media to market themselves – clue: Instagram has become the world’s most successful sex work marketing tool! But how is this impacting teenagers and moreover, with selling sex becoming so normalised, are they tempted to ditch the bar and waiter jobs to get them through uni, and pick up the G-string? The answer is yes. We talk to a teenage girl who has been doing sex work since Sixth Form, and we discuss the motivations behind it – including poverty, capitalism and peer pressure. As this a topic that’s easy to moralise or sensationalise, we chat about the financial, moral and social drivers and outcomes of sex work with tech, finance and politics journalist, Chaminda Jayanetti. This episode is a shocking listen, but a must for all teenagers or anyone with a teenager in their life. 

If you are affected by any of the issues in this episode you can find information and support on our website Podimo.com/YouDontKnowMe.

You Don't Know Me is a Podimo podcast series produced by Mermade.

Producer: Rhyanna Coleman. Audio Engineer: Jon Scott.