CYBERBULLYING: KEEP AN EYE ON YOUR TEENS
When comes to bullying, today’s teenagers are different than what we were years ago; or are they? The answer to that question is no, not really. Not long ago when two or more people disagreed with each other pass the point of words, they would fist fight and throw things at one another. Today, there is cyberbullying. Cyberbullying is where preteens and teens harass each other over the Internet. They do this by posting comments that are vicious on what is called a forum. Two of the most popular forums for posting messages are MySpace and Facebook and they are only a few of the many that out there. These are some of the most common “hang outs” for preteens and teens. When one person decides that he or she does not like the comment or post, (as they may call it) made by another person, it may result in name calling, posting fake profiles, or email messages that are cruel. As an adult, we may say to our children, “Oh get over it” or we tell them that they need to be a little stronger than what they are being because the world is full of bullies and you can’t stay upset for the rest of your life. We as adult have also made the statement, “Eventually, it will pass”. This may or may not ease the pain that the teens feel in the online world. I think, that we think that it is only two maybe three people involved in this online bullying but in essence it may involve a multitude of people that they may or may not know. The child has to deal with the fact that there are a multitude of people seeing this information that was posted about them and it is embarrassing. They may be embarrassed to the point of suicide. I recently read an online article about a mother of a teen daughter going to trial for the first ever cyber federal bullying case in the US. This lady, fifty years old and a neighbor to the young child who committed suicide thought she was justified in what she did. She could not see how she had done anything wrong or broke any laws. Megan, the teenage who committed suicide thought this sick person was a boy, her boyfriend, and he wanted to break up with her and she could not handle it. This young teen hanged herself after the (pretend boyfriend) told her “that the world would be a better place without her”. I personally think that this lady should have gone to prison. I read another article that stated she was acquitted of federal charges which read as follows: “A federal judge on Thursday overturned guilty verdicts against Lori Drew, issuing a directed acquittal on three misdemeanor charges”. The laws and terms of agreements are being reviewed and re-written to protect our innocent youth and basically anyone on the Internet dealing with online posting, chatting and more.
Popkin, Helen A.S. Today: Tech and Money. 5 July 2007. 14 February 2010 http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/19620683/.
Zetter, kIM. Threat Level. 2 July 2009. 14 February 2010 http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2009/07/drew_court/.
1 comment:
When it comes to public insults and harassment there is no freedom of speech. Cyberbullying needs to be classified as slander and libel. The problem is that the Internet is a safe haven for bullies because of the anonymity. There is not a more cowardly way to bully someone then from behind a curtain. Parents need to get involved in helping solve the cyberbullying problem. If parents cared enough about their child being the bully or passing along the material as much as they care when their child is a victim, it would be a huge step forward. But then, of course, how do you know if your child is involved in cyberbullying? You need to monitor their Internet activity. Monitoring software like our PC Pandora records everything that happens on the PC. If your child is a victim, you will know; if they are a bully, you will know. Whatever the case may be with your child, you need to intervene and teach them how to be a Responsible CyberCitizen. Otherwise, the path we are on, will lead to a generation who have no sense of ethics and can’t make the connection between the internet and real-life. Check us out at http://www.pcpandora.com/ to see how you can protect your child from the perils of cyberbullying.
Post a Comment