"DATELINE" REPORT EXPLORES THREAT OF ONLINE SEXUAL PREDATORS

"DATELINE NBC" HIDDEN CAMERA INVESTIGATION CATCHES MEN WHO APPEAR TO BE TRYING TO MEET CHILDREN FOR SEX

Report Includes Startling Confrontations Between NBC's Chris Hansen and the Men Caught in the Hidden Camera Investigation

NEW YORK -- October 31, 2005 -- Last fall, "Dateline's" Chris Hansen investigated an epidemic spreading throughout America - men trolling Internet chat rooms in pursuit of children. Now one year later, he's back with yet another shocking report about the threat of online sexual predators.

Hansen and NBC News set up their hidden camera investigation in an upscale home in a Washington D.C. suburb. Members of a group called Perverted Justice, an Internet watchdog group, pretended to be 12 to 14 year old children chatting online. Within hours, adults solicited the undercover operatives for sex. Some sent graphic sexual images to what they believed were minors. Soon, many of those same men actually show up at the house for a rendezvous with the child.

Instead, they are confronted by Hansen. Most of the men claim their intentions were innocent. Some of the most alarming cases involve seemingly prominent members of the community: a Rabbi, a special education teacher and a doctor. The hidden camera investigation exposes 19 men in three days, giving viewers a frightening glimpse at how widespread the problem is. With consumer groups warning parents that adults looking for sex frequently approach U.S. children who are online, the report will also include advice for parents about how to protect their children from this pervasive danger.

The hour-long broadcast airs on Friday, Nov. 4 (8:00 PM, ET). David Corvo is the executive producer of "Dateline NBC."