Anna Sonoda, LCSW, reflects on the first year of Known and Trusted, a podcast about grooming, trust, and child sexual abuse prevention. Drawing on her experience as a therapist and a mother of five, she reviews the ideas and conversations that shaped the show and shares priorities and practical invitations for year two.

• In this anniversary episode, Anna explains why prevention means looking beyond appearances and paying attention to how relationships, access, and privacy change over time.
• She revisits two core frameworks: the four F’s of grooming - flattery, favoritism, forbidden fruits, and fear - and the GAS model: grooming, access, and space.
• The show reached more than 3,775 streams in its first year. Anna highlights listener interest in episodes including “Not Just a Terrible Story,” “Trust Your Gut,” “Bando Commando,” and “A School Resource Officer.”
• Anna thanks guests who brought survivor perspectives, professional knowledge, and discussion of systems and accountability, including Stacy, Sarah, Megan Farrison, Michelle Peterson, Don McCarty, Carlos Rodriguez, Isolda, and Jeannie.
• She reflects on taking grooming-prevention conversations to Something to Say, True Crimecast, Family Matters, and CrimeCon UK, and on the value of connecting people and disciplines.
• For year two, Anna aims to feature more survivor and professional voices, explore grooming in settings such as schools, sports, faith communities, and online relationships, and make the show’s frameworks easier to apply to real situations.
• Her six invitations for listeners include reading or sharing Duck Duck Groom: Understanding How a Child Becomes a Target and Wait, That’s Weird; writing honest book or podcast reviews; sharing an episode or Substack article; bringing Wait, That’s Weird to a school; and discussing a book with a community group.
• Anna closes with a question for listeners: What is one conversation about trust or child safety you could start this week?

00:00 - Why Anna created Known and Trusted
02:39 - Why grooming can be hard to recognize
03:35 - The four F’s and the GAS model
05:33 - First-year milestone: more than 3,775 streams
08:10 - Survivor stories and the guests who shaped the show
11:17 - Taking prevention conversations to new audiences
12:55 - CrimeCon UK and the power of opening up
15:11 - Anna’s goals for the podcast’s second year
18:47 - Six ways listeners can carry the conversation forward
23:04 - What the first year reinforced, and a question for year two
26:18 - “Show up, look up, and speak up”

• The four F’s: Flattery, favoritism, forbidden fruits, and fear.
• The GAS model: Grooming, access, and space.

www.annasonoda.com

https://annasonodalcsw.substack.com/

https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B0BYK4LV4Q/allbooks?ingress=0&visitId=ba03e15a-8042-4ed3-93fe-5834ab709fe2&ref_=aufs_ap_ahdr_dsk_aa&ccs_id=1fe53855-d3f9-4cef-b43a-48c1e1954490

The conversation explores the profound impact of the podcast 'Adults in the Room' on societal perceptions of abuse and grooming. It highlights the importance of storytelling in raising awareness and the ongoing challenges in addressing institutional responsibilities.

In this conversation, the hosts discuss their experiences and aspirations for the second season of their podcast, focusing on the importance of self-care, storytelling, and addressing the complexities of grooming in schools. Check out more at the link below and share it with anyone who could benefit from this discussion.

https://www.kuow.org/podcast/focus

Takeaways

• Widespread impact of grooming
• Importance of storytelling in abuse awareness
• Focus on self-care in journalism
• Engaging storytelling for broader audience

Chapters

• 00:00 Response to 'Adults in the Room'
• 03:02 Cultural Shifts in Abuse Awareness
• 05:59 Building Relationships with Victims
• 12:06 Understanding Abuse and Grooming
• 18:09 Personal and Professional Impact of the Project
• 23:52 Institutional Responsibility and Change
• 29:57 Future Investigations and Season Two
• 32:56 Season Two Aspirations
• 35:40 Balancing Work and Well-being
• 38:30 The Importance of Storytelling
• 40:14 Barriers to Addressing Grooming
• 44:15 Understanding Grooming Dynamics
• 52:54 Empowering Action Against Abuse

The conversation covers Stacie's personal experience with grooming in high school, the impact of grooming, and the importance of recognizing grooming behaviors. It also delves into the role of teachers, parents, and the reporting structure in preventing and addressing grooming. Stacie shares insights from her upcoming podcast, 'Not Just a Terrible Story,' which sheds light on the issue of grooming in high schools. https://terriblestory.substack.com/about

Takeaways

• Grooming behaviors can be subtle and may feel positive to the victim, making it important to educate children and parents about recognizing red flags.
• Teachers play a crucial role in preventing grooming, and reporting structures should be re-evaluated to ensure unbiased reporting and investigation.
• Stacie's podcast, 'Not Just a Terrible Story,' provides detailed accounts of grooming experiences and aims to raise awareness about the issue of grooming in high schools.