My Space a Parent’s Opinion
Posted on April 28th, 2006by Michael Gray in Random Thoughts
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While this post can be considered as part of my MySpace series as it doesn’t pertain to marketing or search in any way I decided it should stand on it’s own. As a marketing professional I’m excited by what MySpace has to offer, however as a parent I have some very serious concerns about what I saw and some of my experiences on MySpace. If this holds no interest to you feel free to stop reading and skip this post.
When I was on my “friend collecting” experiment I used “sex” as a tool to test my friendship gathering ability. I picked three pictures of women who were reasonably equally attractive. I didn’t intentionally flirt or lead anyone on, however the personality who was actively seeking out new friends got a lot more attention and not all of it was good. For example the guy in this NSFW picture is rather clear what he’s looking for, and this NSFW picture is equally frightening to a parent. Many guys were very straight forward and blunt that they were looking to “hook up” and one even went as far as to offer me cash.
Having been a rebellious teen I understand nothing is going to make your child go and use MySpace as quickly as a parent forbidding them to go anywhere near it. Once they reach that 14-16 year old stage denying access to MySpace just isn’t a workable or realistic solution. In addition to the standard internet safety practices like requiring them to use the computer in a general family room and not behind closed doors in their bedroom, you should be looking at your child’s profile and who their “friends” are. Try to discuss any concerns and fears you have with them first and find a workable solution you both like (or both equally hate). MySpace isn’t all bad but clearly there are some bad apples in the bunch you need to watch out for.
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April 28th, 2006 at 6:42 am
Generally, it’s good to be a tech-savvy parent - imagine the horror that MySpace and the like stuff is to technically impaired parents!
April 28th, 2006 at 3:00 pm
Not too long ago I arrived home to find two twenty-something hoodlums trying to sell magazine subscriptions to my impressionable teenage daughters. My girls were in the process of writing a check to these “charmers” when I asked those scumbags to show me a drivers license. They said they needed to go back to their car to get the license, and I was able to stop their scheme before they made off with a check that they could potentially “wash” and rewrite for a larger amount. Later that evening I was taking out the trash when I found a bail bondsman business card in my driveway that they had dropped.
Those NSFW pictures you linked to reminded me of them.
May 12th, 2006 at 8:09 pm
>>”imagine the horror that MySpace and the like stuff is to technically impaired parents!”
Exactly what I thought.
After our school was notified by the FBI that several of our students were beign targeted by known pedophiles, I got concerned. We handled the issue with the kids myspace accounts, notified parents etc. In my research what I found was nothing short of horrific. These kids were posting pictures, some inapropriate some not. The language used was worse than any I have ever heard or read. All of this and the parents never had a clue and most still don’t. So, I created a web site http://www.theparentsedge.com to help parents deal with this problem. I have included sex offenders lists per state -free of charge, tips on blocking myspace, articles, and so much more. Parents must begin to monitor their kids internet usage.
-Rich
father of 5 and very little hair.