USA Today published an article on Monday that argued about the misconceptions the public has on pedophiles, which ignited a firestorm of backlash on social media. The article was originally titled, “What the public keeps getting wrong about pedophilia” written by national correspondent Alia E. Dastagir. Throughout the article, Dastagir cites researchers who study pedophilia who argue that pedophilia, or the attraction to minors, is “misunderstood” as being synonymous with child sexual abuse.

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