Myspace

Teenagers are wired for relationships. As children they had playmates but now as they are getting older, they want friends. This means their peer group now soars to “major play” status. The power of the “audience” whether real or imagined, guides much of their social behavior. Our technologically savvy world increases the challenge because peer groups are no longer geographically limited. While we as adults often see the Internet as an information gathering tool, teens use it to build a network of friends that often spans the globe…this is MySpace.

Why MySpace?
Peer pressure: “All my friends do it, so I had to try it if I wanted to fit in.”
Curiosity; “I have always wondered how it would make me feel.”
Risk taking “I wonder what else is out there?”
Fun seeking “There are lots of cool things I’m finding.”
Self-confidence “People care about me and are interested in what I have to say.”
Rebellion “It freaks my parents out and they don’t know what’s going on.”
Escapism “It makes me forget the stresses of life and school.”

Social networks such as MySpace and FaceBook let users create an online profile, often including photos and blogs, for sharing and making friends. Phenomenally popular, these sites have attracted criticism for making it easier for predators to contact teens and children. The chief executive of MySpace is Chris Delwolfe.

Caught on Quickly

Now it has drawn even more major attention, in the name of big bucks. Recently, media conglomerate News Corp revealed that it's buying Intermix Media, the company that owns MySpace and about thirty other sites, for $580 million in cash. Los Angeles-based Intermix owns fifty-three percent of MySpace and plans to buy the rest. It will become part of News Corp.'s new Fox Interactive Media unit, which was created and also is based in Los Angeles.

In less than two years, MySpace has emerged as one of the hottest sites on the Web. It has more page views than Google. And presently with over forty million members, and a growth rate of two million a month, it stands to rival MSN, Yahoo!, and AOL as one of the major destinations on the Web.

With a heavy focus on music, it has become a part of daily life for teenagers and young adults nationwide. Members create highly personalized home pages loaded with message boards, blogs, photos, and streaming music and video. It’s a cyber secret teenagers keep from tech-challenged parents who are not as savvy. Myspace is a world where the kids next door can play any role they want. Though they may not realize everyone with Internet access, including sexual predators, may see the pictures and personal information they post.

MySpace has no filters, no protection, and if your children are playing on, using, surfing, or experiencing MySpace they are experiencing mind bending images and information. When Dateline surfed MySpace, they found scenes of binge drinking, apparent drug use, teens posing in underwear, and other members simulating sex, and in some cases even having it. They also found less provocative pages, but potentially even more dangerous. Teens listed not only their names, and addresses, but even cell phone numbers and after school schedules.

How Do Kids Use MySpace?

First, they sign up and create a profile.Their profile is their space on the Web, where they can describe themselves, their hobbies, and interests. They can even upload photos and write journal entries.

Second, kids invite their friends to join their personal network. Or they search the site for their friends who are already members of MySpace.

Third, they view the connections they create between their friends and their friends’ friends. Some MySpace users have thousands of people in their extended network!

What is Blogging?

Blogging is the frequent, chronological publication on the Web of personal thoughts and opinions for other Internet users to read. Blogs are everywhere. Blogging is the place where young people go to bare their souls, to vent, and to gossip. Often they do so with unabashed fervor and little self-editing, posting their innermost thoughts for any number of Web surfers to see.