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MySpace fits the devil’s profile
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I have long been contemplating the value of social networking Sites. Their craze has died down, but their popularity has continued. I’ve followed along, getting a MySpace account to keep in touch with old friends, and then getting a Facebook account to get in touch with newer friends.
I have since deleted my MySpace account. I had been lightly entertained early in my MySpace experience by the random e-mails and friend requests from people I didn’t know. I knew they lied, if they had read my profile they would not have been interested in friendship with me. I usually associated these random events to some weirdo and moved on.
In a broader perspective, these experiences have more impact. Initially there’s nothing wrong with social networking Sites. They’re fun, great for connecting with old friends and Facebook has all those great applications, right? Or not, but you get the idea.
The concern growing in my mind has been for the new, younger generation using the Sites. I’m worried about the thousands of teens and pre-teens that utilize the them and the “weirdos” that are on them.
Initially my concern with this issue was minimal, until I met a little girl in a group of kids I work with. This particular little girl characterized herself as emo. She acted depressed and lonely.
Although much of her efforts seem to be an act, her vulnerability is real. She told me her sister had blocked her from using MySpace. Now she can’t get in contact with her friends as often as she’d like, so she sneaks onto the Internet at night. She’s only 11. This lonely little girl is a prime candidate for sexual predators and she’s the reason I’m concerned.
There’s a new generation in the Internet world, but unfortunately the anonymity offered by the Internet brings with it a load of problems – it’s full of predators.
It’s extreme to blame MySpace, Facebook or any other social networking Site for the problem of sexual predators, but they play a part. The Internet has presented children with opportunities to get in touch with information and people they shouldn’t be in contact with, and social networking Sites are a prime location for predators to target children.
So why should we care about the problems resulting from social networking sites? I use my Facebook for all the right reasons, so technically it shouldn’t be my problem, right? That’s often how I feel. Facebook and MySpace both work to remove sexual predators and attempt to protect their younger users (although whether they’re doing enough may be questionable). But the problem is still growing and, like most issues, the causes are convoluted and not one particular party can be faulted.
We can all continue to assume it’s not our problem, although we participate in the same activities (in this case social networking) and continue to shuffle responsibility, or we can assume some responsibility in an attempt to eradicate a problem.
This is the dilemma I’ve been facing and I’m not exactly sure what can be done from our side of things. I do know that MySpace is sleazy. A lot of ads are pretty risqué and you may like it that way, but it also provides an atmosphere inviting to sexual predators. I’ve deleted my MySpace account because I didn’t want to support it anymore. The other direction I’ve taken is educating myself on the issue. You can start at sharedhope.org, you might be surprised at what you learn.
I wish I had some great words about eradicating a huge problem, but I don’t. But we can start by taking a little more responsibility.
ABBIE KIRCHER
Opinion Writer