My chosen article was on pedophilia via MySpace.com. However, many other topics were touched that dealt with the website during class discussion.
The response that many people in the class spoke out about regarding my article was that it instilled an unnecessary underlying fear into the public. A fear that told them their young children were apt to become victims of perverted adults seeking out children through this online community. Some students in the class believed that using MySpace does not increase one’s chances of falling victim to online predators, nor will it increase the overall frequency of occurrences concerning pedophilia within the nation. It was also mentioned that MySpace isn’t the only way for a pedophile to reach children, but instead has just become another option.
I think that young girls are prone to making mistakes and do not have an awareness of when to be socially cautious with personal information. With age comes an unconscious tendency to know what information is safe to discuss and what can be potentially exploited. Given access to MySpace, young girls are allowed a way to give their online information in a way that is “fun” by means of a decorative profile for their friends. Potentially, this profile information can be used by an online predator. However, this is not to say that it will increase the childrens chances of becoming a victim; pedophiles can drive down any street and pick up children whether they have a MySpace profile or not.
The class also expressed mixed responses to whether or not MySpace offered acceptable privacy for its users. Some classmates made remarks that changes had been made to offer sufficient privacy choices for site users that would enable more control of who would be able to view his/her profile, photos, and blog. Others said that they didn’t feel the need to make their profiles private because they didn’t have a fear of using MySpace. My opinion falls with the latter; when I’m using MySpace I don’t feel fear that my life is in danger of being intruded upon.
At the beginning of class everyone seemed to have a positive opinion of MySpace. Towards the end of class we were asked if this discussion changed anyones view of MySpace; the majority of people responded that no it did not. However, when we were told to write for a few mintutes in conclusion to the topics, I took note that every response read aloud had a negative undertone towards MySpace.
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Myspace has grown a lot over the past few years because it has become a social network that allows friends and family to remain close to one another. Though its original purpose was to advertise products to the millions of Internet users,this now socially equipped site has made way for family, friends and soon to be friends to rejoice and share common interest. But with all great ideas comes many faults, one major in particular for Myspace is the immediate access to private information, that is shared online. Through this, many predators gain personal information on vulnerable, or naive children. When the information is in the wrong hands, many young users of Myspace are at potential risk of getting hurt.
Even through videos make Myspace seem as though the corporations are out to get u, i don't see much change going about how we do things on myspace. Yes i know they say there out to steal our identities and sell whatever they can. At the same time Myspacelets me show how i feel through music, layouts , and blogs. I can also post pics of friends or of myself on my pageand coment friends of things that have happened throughout the day. With all of the negatives it presents most of us really don't care and will continue using myspace.
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=980DEEDD1F30F936A1575AC0A9619C8B63
On one hand, I agree with Emily's conclusions. It is a rather unnecessary fear. If the right precautions are taken, there’s nothing to worry about. But it's not only girls that are falling for these scams. I'm sure there are plenty of underage boys being targeted and falling for these... posers. I do think that they [girls] may be the only ones we hear about, mainly because little girls are still thought of as the main victims in kidnappings and pedophiliac cases. Regardless, parents need to be less over-protective and more informative with their children. We see this almost everywhere. From issues with drugs, to sex, to online conduct. If your kid is/seems easily exploited, you need to explain to them that they shouldn't talk to strangers (without first consenting these 'friendships' with their parents).
I'm not sure if parents today don’t want to talk about these things because they're embarrassed, or because they feel they don’t have to (they have that 'not my child' naiveté), but the blame can't always lie in the website or the predators. Parents need to take some responsibility for their children's actions. Many sites (MySpace included) have parental restrictions on them - ones that are password protected. If a parent is truly worried about their child becoming a victim, they should utilize these options more often.
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