Comments on: 'Frontline' on 'Growing Up Online'

The PBS program "Frontline" presents "Growing Up Online" and calls the technological generation gap "the biggest generation gap since rock and roll." (parent.thesis) blogger Amy Tiemann agrees.

[AmyStrecker]

I agree that Frontline did to a good job on conveying just how deeply technology is embedded in the lives of teens. Today I did four presentations at a local high school about cyberbullying and used Ryan Halligan's story on Frontline as one of the clips. The students were quite moved by his tragic story and it was a good talking point about the power of words.

I've also written about the show here: http://mindoh.wordpress.com/2008/01/23/be-afraid-be-very-afraid-take-two/

[mojomom]

Thanks for adding your perspective, Amy. I enjoyed your blog post. The story of Ryan Halligan's suicide was scary on many levels. First, as a reminder that in the "old days" if you were bullied at school, as bad as that was, maybe you were at least safe at home, but with cyberbullying it can happen 24 hours a day, and leaves you wondering who you can really trust (Is this being done my my worst enemy or my 'best friend' in disguise?). Second, the story of how Ryan befriended another suicidal teen and they encouraged each other over IM (encouraged Ryan to go through with the suicide) was awful. And I could not believe the "personality quiz" that someone had made that tells you which method you should use to commit suicide. Teens are looking for places to pour out their hearts, share their angst, and the internet can lead into some very unhelpfully dark corners.

[kl-root]

I did not see the Frontline report but would like to know where the teens interviewed live. Are they urban suburban rural ? Are these teens a majority? I Live in a more rural area and many teens here do not have continuous access to the internet or cell phones.

[mojomom]

Hi everyone, I just wanted to make it really clear that you can watch the full "Growing Up Online" program on the Frontline website.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/kidsonline/

[Martha Z]

I saw the Frontline documentary and it showed how scary these social Internet gatherings are for teens. One girl belonged to a group that was for Anorexic Women. The young girl mentioned she belonged to it because the members were like her and did not judge her and accepted her anorexia and even praised her for being anorexic. She claimed that it was the only place where she could be herself and not be judged... They even had the Anorexia Goddess to worship! It is scary to have sites that encourage young people to do things that will hurt them emotionally and or physically. Of course there are other sights that support teenagers and are good for them to belong to. I suggest there be a law that obligates website hosting companies to ban or not host sites that encourage criminal or fatal actions to be posted online.

http://WomenOnGuard.com