Earlier this year a list of almost 100 girls (many under 18) that attended schools in New York started circulating via Facebook. It was called “The Winchester Smut List”. Students reported that before long everyone at school knew who was on the list and some of the girls on the list started getting numerous Facebook friend requests. “The Winchester Smut List” Facebook Page got 7,000 “likes” in just 24 hours and hundreds of comments. Fortunately the page was removed from Facebook but the damage was already done to the girls on the list. They were all victims of cyber bullying and the creator of the list is unknown.
According to a recent Pew Internet study 95% of teens, ages 12-17, are online and 80% of them are using social media sites. The shocking part is that 9 out of 10 them say they have seen cruel or mean behavior on social networking sites. “The Smut List” is just one example of this. I am concerned that parents are unaware of the potential dangers their kids could face on social networking sites like Facebook. I am especially concerned for the younger kids (12 and under). Why? A survey conducted by Harris Interactive show millions of underage children are singing up for Facebook and their parents are helping them lie about their age so they can get an account. If parents truly understood the risks they wouldn’t be doing this. They are not doing their children any favors. Most of the bullying occurs in middle school and the younger the kid, the meaner the peer group becomes according to Rachel Simmons, author and speaker on children and social media.
Parents: putting your young children in an environment like Facebook at an age where the bullying that takes place can be the meanest and most intense is a recipe for disaster. Also, just because your child is a teen doesn’t mean we can relax and let them wonder the social media landscape without worry. Don’t forget “The Smut List”. We need to keep our younger children off social networks and keep an eye on our older children that are on social networks. It is the wild, Wild West out there.
Editor’s Note: To learn about protecting your kids from cyberbullying, check out our cyberbullying parent resource page.