Baby Olivia isn91裸聊视频檛 a real baby. It91裸聊视频檚 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 91裸聊视频渄esigned to manipulate the emotions of viewers.91裸聊视频�

Here91裸聊视频檚 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 that91裸聊视频檚 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. Olivia91裸聊视频檚 mouth and eyes open and close, and her hands move.

91裸聊视频淭hough she has yet to greet the outside world, she has already completed an amazing journey,91裸聊视频� the narrator says.

What is Live Action?

Live Action says on its website it 91裸聊视频渆xists today to shift public opinion91裸聊视频� on abortion and is dedicated to supporting a 91裸聊视频渃ulture of life.91裸聊视频�

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.

What91裸聊视频檚 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 91裸聊视频渁verage developmental process91裸聊视频� using 91裸聊视频渨eeks after fertilization.91裸聊视频� That91裸聊视频檚 different from 91裸聊视频渨eeks after the last menstrual cycle,91裸聊视频� 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 91裸聊视频渨eeks after fertilization91裸聊视频� 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 isn91裸聊视频檛 yet a fetus and doesn91裸聊视频檛 have a heart.

The video also describes the animated figure91裸聊视频檚 motion and actions with words like 91裸聊视频減laying,91裸聊视频� 91裸聊视频渆xploring,91裸聊视频� 91裸聊视频渟ighing,91裸聊视频� and making 91裸聊视频渟peaking movements.91裸聊视频� 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 video91裸聊视频檚 language implies 91裸聊视频渁 level of intention that we just can91裸聊视频檛 say is present.91裸聊视频�

What do supporters of the bills say?

Iowa Rep. Luana Stoltenberg, a Republican, said she was impressed by the video91裸聊视频檚 portrayal of science, and she believes showing fetal development could help curious kids understand where they came from.

91裸聊视频淲hat91裸聊视频檚 the worst that can happen?91裸聊视频� Stoltenberg said. 91裸聊视频淢aybe a young child learns how they are developed and grow and so if they become pregnant, they decide maybe I don91裸聊视频檛 want an abortion? Is that a horrible thing?91裸聊视频�

Rose said she believes backlash is being driven by abortion rights advocates who don91裸聊视频檛 want imagery of life in the womb shown because it 91裸聊视频渄irectly threatens their worldview, which is that this is not a life that is worthy of protection.91裸聊视频�

Sen. Patricia Rucker, a Republican in West Virginia, said Baby Olivia isn91裸聊视频檛 preaching or partisan. It shows human growth as 91裸聊视频渁 beautiful, miraculous thing91裸聊视频� 91裸聊视频� not unlike learning how a chick develops 91裸聊视频� and that teachers can 91裸聊视频渟pringboard from that to further explanation.91裸聊视频�

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 agencies91裸聊视频� 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 Dakota91裸聊视频檚 Planned Parenthood director who has a graduate degree in human development and family science.

91裸聊视频淲hen we91裸聊视频檙e looking at promoting healthy well-being, especially in our adolescents, never once have I seen it said 91裸聊视频� 91裸聊视频楾hese kids really need to see an ultrasound video,91裸聊视频�91裸聊视频� Christiensen said.

North Dakota91裸聊视频檚 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 doesn91裸聊视频檛 mandate showing Baby Olivia, the state91裸聊视频檚 department of public instruction specifically references it as an option.

The Associated Press asked 12 of North Dakota91裸聊视频檚 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 state91裸聊视频檚 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 91裸聊视频渟ignificantly longer91裸聊视频� video that already was part of the curriculum, the district told the AP in an email, adding that it 91裸聊视频渃overs other information about pregnancy that helps teach additional health standards.91裸聊视频�

Iowa91裸聊视频檚 latest proposal, which passed in committee, would require a video 91裸聊视频� Baby Olivia or something 91裸聊视频渃omparable91裸聊视频� 91裸聊视频� shown starting in the seventh grade.

West Virginia91裸聊视频檚 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 Kentucky91裸聊视频檚 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.