Baby Olivia isnB次元官网网址檛 a real baby. ItB次元官网网址檚 an animated fetus that develops over the course of a three-minute video that has become a new front in state-level politics.

Bills in the Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri and West Virginia legislatures would require public school students to watch a video like Baby Olivia, which was created by an organization that opposes abortion. The legislation mirrors a North Dakota law passed last year.

The organization, Live Action, and supporters of the legislation say it would teach kids where they came from and encourage an appreciation for human life. But some educators and physicians say the video is deceptive and problematic for a young audience.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, a professional organization with over 60,000 members, said in an email that the video is anti-abortion misinformation B次元官网网址渄esigned to manipulate the emotions of viewers.B次元官网网址�

HereB次元官网网址檚 a primer on the video and the debate it has sparked:

Who is Baby Olivia?

Baby Olivia is the starring character in an animated video thatB次元官网网址檚 meant to visualize development in the womb. A voiceover introduces viewers to Olivia as an illustration of a fully developed baby in utero appears on screen. OliviaB次元官网网址檚 mouth and eyes open and close, and her hands move.

B次元官网网址淭hough she has yet to greet the outside world, she has already completed an amazing journey,B次元官网网址� the narrator says.

What is Live Action?

Live Action says on its website it B次元官网网址渆xists today to shift public opinionB次元官网网址� on abortion and is dedicated to supporting a B次元官网网址渃ulture of life.B次元官网网址�

Founder Lila Rose said the video was designed to be informative, lifelike and appropriate for anyone, and made in consultation with doctors. Of the six, two are trained OB-GYNs; the others are trained in anatomy, biochemistry, pediatric medicine and neuroscience.

The organization spent nearly $5 million in 2022 to create and distribute content widely, according to filing reports. Those reports also show Live Action more than quadrupled its cash from contributions and grants in just four years, totaling $14 million in 2022.

Live Action also is known for efforts to expose Planned Parenthood, publishing videos and reports obtained by posing as patients. Some of those efforts led Planned Parenthood $2 million in damages in 2019.

WhatB次元官网网址檚 in the video?

The video shows an egg being fertilized and implanted, then walks through embryonic and fetal developments over the course of a pregnancy.

It calls out general markers in what Rose said is an B次元官网网址渁verage developmental processB次元官网网址� using B次元官网网址渨eeks after fertilization.B次元官网网址� ThatB次元官网网址檚 different from B次元官网网址渨eeks after the last menstrual cycle,B次元官网网址� which is what a pregnant person would typically hear from a doctor.

Iowa physicians and educators said in a letter to state lawmakers that by using weeks after fertilization, the video misleads viewers because the framing indicates milestones happen about two weeks earlier than is accurate.

Rose argued that B次元官网网址渨eeks after fertilizationB次元官网网址� is more typical of an academic context, like biology class, and Live Action said critics calling out inaccuracies are not taking that difference into account.

What else do critics point to?

The Iowa physicians and educators said references to are widely disputed. At six weeks, the embryo isnB次元官网网址檛 yet a fetus and doesnB次元官网网址檛 have a heart.

The video also describes the animated figureB次元官网网址檚 motion and actions with words like B次元官网网址減laying,B次元官网网址� B次元官网网址渆xploring,B次元官网网址� B次元官网网址渟ighing,B次元官网网址� and making B次元官网网址渟peaking movements.B次元官网网址� Those words assign human traits and properties to a fetus that are more sophisticated than medicine can prove, said Emily Boevers, a practicing OB-GYN in Iowa and co-founder of Iowans for Health Liberty, which advocates for reproductive health care.

There are signals that the brain is developing and functioning, Boevers said, but the videoB次元官网网址檚 language implies B次元官网网址渁 level of intention that we just canB次元官网网址檛 say is present.B次元官网网址�

What do supporters of the bills say?

Iowa Rep. Luana Stoltenberg, a Republican, said she was impressed by the videoB次元官网网址檚 portrayal of science, and she believes showing fetal development could help curious kids understand where they came from.

B次元官网网址淲hatB次元官网网址檚 the worst that can happen?B次元官网网址� Stoltenberg said. B次元官网网址淢aybe a young child learns how they are developed and grow and so if they become pregnant, they decide maybe I donB次元官网网址檛 want an abortion? Is that a horrible thing?B次元官网网址�

Rose said she believes backlash is being driven by abortion rights advocates who donB次元官网网址檛 want imagery of life in the womb shown because it B次元官网网址渄irectly threatens their worldview, which is that this is not a life that is worthy of protection.B次元官网网址�

Sen. Patricia Rucker, a Republican in West Virginia, said Baby Olivia isnB次元官网网址檛 preaching or partisan. It shows human growth as B次元官网网址渁 beautiful, miraculous thingB次元官网网址� B次元官网网址� not unlike learning how a chick develops B次元官网网址� and that teachers can B次元官网网址渟pringboard from that to further explanation.B次元官网网址�

What do schools already teach about sex and pregnancy?

Many states have started to what is taught about sex education and when. State and federal agenciesB次元官网网址� goal in educating students is typically to prevent teen pregnancies and reduce the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.

Teaching kids about pregnancy and conception should be part of an all-encompassing and medically accurate curriculum, said Katie Christensen, North DakotaB次元官网网址檚 Planned Parenthood director who has a graduate degree in human development and family science.

B次元官网网址淲hen weB次元官网网址檙e looking at promoting healthy well-being, especially in our adolescents, never once have I seen it said B次元官网网址� B次元官网网址楾hese kids really need to see an ultrasound video,B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址� Christiensen said.

North DakotaB次元官网网址檚 law requires health and human sexuality courses to include a three-minute ultrasound video and a computer-generated rendering of development in the womb. While the law doesnB次元官网网址檛 mandate showing Baby Olivia, the stateB次元官网网址檚 department of public instruction specifically references it as an option.

The Associated Press asked 12 of North DakotaB次元官网网址檚 largest school districts about the video. Of the 10 that replied, five use Baby Olivia. One is Fargo Public Schools, which accounts for about 10% of the stateB次元官网网址檚 students and additionally shows a second video to ninth graders.

Bismarck, the largest district, does not use Baby Olivia. West Fargo Public Schools shows a B次元官网网址渟ignificantly longerB次元官网网址� video that already was part of the curriculum, the district told the AP in an email, adding that it B次元官网网址渃overs other information about pregnancy that helps teach additional health standards.B次元官网网址�

IowaB次元官网网址檚 latest proposal, which passed in committee, would require a video B次元官网网址� Baby Olivia or something B次元官网网址渃omparableB次元官网网址� B次元官网网址� shown starting in the seventh grade.

West VirginiaB次元官网网址檚 proposal would require showing, specifically, Baby Olivia to eighth and 10th graders. Rucker said she expects it to be merged with other bills before it moves to the next step.

Missouri would require the Baby Olivia video by the third grade, while KentuckyB次元官网网址檚 proposal allows any video that meets the standards as early as sixth grade. Both of these bills were introduced in January but have not received hearings.