Earlier this week, MySpace announced it was participating in an industry task force to develop a more rigorous age-verification system, and that it is modifying the structure and capabilities of the popular social networking site to better protect its users. Among the new features (several of which are noted in this Associated Press article), MySpace will debut a new high school section and give parents the ability to submit their children’s email addresses for better protection.
The decision was made in partnership with 49 state lawmakers, but, as MSNBC reports, “the agreement did not have penalties and was not legally binding”; this action by MySpace is one of intent, goodwill, and hope for a safer online experience. Regardless, as the next shift in the terrain of online social networks and online safety, this is a move for the best.
By the fast-paced clock of the Internet, online social networks have been around forever (the Wikipedia puts Classmates.com at ca. 1995), yet the millions of users (100 million on MySpace alone) still sail in largely uncharted waters. We advise anyone surfing the web to be cautious in their online experience. We tell them to never post personal information or photos which could, in the wrong hands, lead to identity theft. But we recognize social networking sites are predicated on the fact that people want to share, that they want to stake out their corner of cyberspace in a very personal way and to connect with others.
In our Delete Cyberbullying campaign, we say, “if you wouldn’t say it in person, don’t say it online,” and, the “Think Before You Post” campaign by the Ad Council and National Center for Missing & Exploited Children reinforces that advice, as it’s applicable to a lot more situations than cyberbullying. (I thought the Bulletin Board video was particularly effective.) Yet, where would online social networking be if we only spoke to people we already knew well enough to talk to in real life? Online social networking could be just a supplemental way of communicating, but its potential reaches much further—for amateur artists, for advertisers, for business contacts, and for friends.
While the announcement by MySpace promises a safer sandbox for all, the choice to play nice and play safe is ultimately up to the users. So what can you do? Two things: Educate yourself and ask watchgroups and authorities to make a difference within the system.
If you’re on a social networking site, you have already agreed to the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. It won’t hurt for you to re-read them. If you’re on MySpace, check out its Safety Tips. There are links to more resources there for parents and teens.
MySpace isn’t only for individuals; many organizations create and maintain a MySpace profile. Even McGruff® has a profile (but, being the super-busy Crime Dog that he is, he hasn’t had a chance to update it in a long time). Given that parenthetical, it may seem hypocritical of me to suggest other busy organizations devoted to online safety and protecting children spend some precious resources to maintain a MySpace presence. But but I believe social networking sites are here to stay (or, at least, here to evolve) and much as MySpace is going to modify the structure, so must we work to keep the sandbox safe by playing together.
A hat tip to MSNBC’s Today Show for this topic.
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