Boston Teens Learn Modern Etiquette for Facebook Romance

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Boston teens got a lesson in the do’s and don’ts of Facebook romance late last month during a one-day conference on “healthy break-ups.” According to The New York Times Magazine, the seminar, sponsored by the Boston Public Health Commission, attempted to answer such pressing questions as: how fast is too fast to change your relationship status? And when is it OK to delete pictures of your ex? Behaviors were classified as “healthy” or “unhealthy.” During one session, a 17-year-old boy was told he should “take a technology timeout” the next time he felt the urge to rush home and change his relationship status after a break-up. Teens were encouraged not to initiate break-ups through text messages or on Facebook. In order to drive the point home, one adult facilitator wore a pin reading, “Face It, Don’t Facebook It.”

Conference organizer Nicole Daly told The Times magazine breakups are the part of relationships adults never discuss with teens.

The Ish (Preview)

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Next week we're launching a new weekly video called the Ish. No plans, no format. Just exploring youth culture. For the next 6 weeks we'll also be drawing a name at the end of each episode from people who entered a sweepstakes on our Facebook page. Go enter and you could win $100.

Missouri Won’t Let Teachers Friend Students on Facebook

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Teachers in Missouri may want to spend the last few days before school begins removing their students from their friends list on Facebook. Missouri Senate Bill 54, just signed by Gov. Jay Nixon, prohibits contact between teachers and students on social network sites such as Facebook and Twitter. The measure is supposed to clearly define student-teacher boundaries. But, according to some educators, the bill isn’t clear enough. "It says current and former students, that's what the bill reads,” a Nixa, Mo., School District spokesperson told Missouri’s KSPR. “Does that mean students you've had in the classroom, the school district?  What if you've changed school districts?"

Get the Most out of JJIE.org

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As I am sure you've discovered  JJIE.org is the best source for daily coverage of juvenile justice issues not just in Georgia, but around the United States. Every week thousands of people are logging on to find out what is happening in the lives of young people and in the issues they face. But did you know that many of the conversations taking place around our stories aren't happening on our website? The JJIE community is a lively bunch, chiming in on issues from all corners of the web. Below are some ways you can connect with JJIE outside of this website:

 

Facebook.

Facebook is Banning 20,000 Underage Kids Every Day

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It’s no secret that kids love social networking sites like Facebook.  But a new study by the Pew Internet & American Life Project found that many of those kids aren’t supposed to be there at all. It turns out that tens of thousands of them are too young to be lingering in this cyber-hangout.  The report says that 46 percent of 12-year-olds in the United States are on Facebook despite the fact the social media site expressly prohibits anyone under the age of 13. The problem with that, of course, is that all a young person has to do is lie about his or her age. And, apparently that's what a lot of them do. In fact, the Daily Telegraph in Australia reports that Facebook is kicking some 20,000 youngsters off the site a day.

Many Kids Don’t Understand the Legal Risks of Facebook

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A recent Australian study suggests that many kids don’t understand the legal risks of social networking sites such as Facebook.  Thirty percent of Victoria, Australia middle-grade children surveyed did not believe there was any legal liability associated with social media sites.  Legal risks include potential defamation and harassment, among others. With more than 93 percent of kids regularly using Facebook, and 73 percent of students surveyed reporting “unwelcome” contact by strangers through social networking sites, researchers recommend integrating social media education into school curricula. “Little attention has been given to the potential legal risks that children and young people may face when using social networking sites,” said Dr. Michael Henderson, a co-author of the study. You can read the full report here.

Live Conversation on Bullying on Facebook from the White House Today

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In conjunction with President Obama and First Lady Michelle's Conference on Bullying Prevention, Facebook DC Live will host a live conversation from the White House about "how we can all work together to make the Internet safer and promote a culture of shared responsibility and of strong digital citizenship." It starts today at 12:00pm EST. Guests Include:

Facebook Chief Security Officer Joe Sullivan: Joe, a former federal prosecutor and founding member of the Justice Department's Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property Units, oversees safety and security for Facebook's more than 500 million active users. Melody Barnes: Melody is the President’s Domestic Policy Advisor and the Director of the Domestic Policy Council, which coordinates the domestic policy-making process in the White House. Stephanie Cutter: Stephanie is Assistant to the President and Deputy Senior Advisor at the White House.

President to Use Bully Pulpit to Address Bullying

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President Obama and First Lady Michelle will convene an anti-bullying conference at The White House, tomorrow, Thursday, March 10. The White House says the Conference on Bullying Prevention will include top officials from the Department of Education and Health and Human Services as well as students, parents, teachers and others who are trying to address the issue from across the nation. The conference will also include breakout sessions on proven policies that prevent bullying. The White House has been eager to engage a wider and younger audience on the issue, reaching out to people through social media. The president announced the conference on his Facebook page and has encouraged people to participate in the conference via live chats.

Georgia Bill Aims to protect Kids online

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Georgia students may want to think twice about bullying someone online, especially if HB 310 passes. HB 310, better known as “The End to Cyberbullying Act,” will take the current law and expand it to include any form of cyber communication that would be considered bullying. Currently, the law in Georgia prohibits any form of bullying of another student only on school property, busses, bus stops and at school events. If the new provision were to become law, school officials could act even if the cyberbullying didn’t occur on school property. For example, if a student decides to send a threatening message through Facebook while at home to another student, the student who sent the harassing message can still be disciplined by school officials.

Teens Arrested for Creating Vicious Phony Facebook Page

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Two Florida high school girls were busted for cyberbullying after creating a degrading phony Facebook page for a fellow classmate. Police say Taylor Wynn, 16, and McKenzie Barker, 15, posted graphic, lewd messages on the page and photos with their schoolmate’s head pasted on the body of a naked, prepubescent girl.  Wynn told police they created the page as a joke because,“Nobody liked her.”  The page, created in April, had 181 friends. A classmate of the victim alerted school authorities to the page, which was quickly taken down.  Police say the two girls created a new page attacking the victim soon after that was also taken down. The victim has reported that because of the Facebook page she has been subjected to “numerous incidents of teasing and ridicule.”

Unfortunately, cyberbullying is nothing new but, as JJIE.org reported in November, Facebook has created an application that reports incidents of bullying.  In December we told you about a girl who tracked down two college students who were harassing her online.