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My Kid on MySpace

When our kids are small, we walk them across the street. When they get old enough, we give them careful instructions ("Look both ways") and watch them cross the street by themselves. When they get older still, they cross the streets by themselves while we are somewhere else. Whether they are holding our hands while crossing the street, or crossing the street alone while we watch over them, or crossing the street while we are not there, the same dangers in crossing the street exist.

This holds true with everything, including the Internet. Try to look at the Internet as just a bigger street'. We teach our children when they are young how to use the Internet; we monitor them (or should be) while they are using it, and then we have to trust them to use the Internet responsibly, remembering all that we taught them. Note: This only holds true if we have actually taught our children Internet safety and responsibility, and if we have truly monitored their use while they lived at home.

I have a MySpace account. I have one because my daughter has one. I wanted to know the ins and outs of how people can contact other people (or, more specifically, how someone could contact her!). I am not satisfied by her telling me that she is being responsible without my being able to make sure for myself; she is not eighteen and I am still supposed to be responsible for her. She was not allowed to have a MySpace account until she understood that I was to know her passwords and be able to monitor her (as well as her friends), and her space' at all times. I admit, I am constantly telling her to delete pictures, and get rid of friends who use bad language and post bad content, but I know what is going on. I read all her messages and she knows it (in fact, she has known since she was old enough to understand that she would be closely monitored, especially on the Internet). My only problem is trying to determine the lines when it comes to allowing kids to be kids, and allowing her some semblance of privacy. There are things kids say and do with their best friends, and it is all innocent fununtil it gets posted for public viewing (even with her limited public,' as her profile is set to "Private"). Girl stuff is girl stuff, and not meant for young boys to see and hear. No, it is not easy to determine the lines, but, again, at least I am able to see what is going on.

I believe the whole basis of issues' with MySpace and other Internet play spaces is parental control and monitoring, or lack of it. When all this started, parents were not fully aware of the reach their children had, or the reach other people had and, to a point, their ignorance could be excused. But now we know; the Internet is yet another means of bad people taking advantage of progress, and it is up to us to keep our children safe. All we have to do is teach them (yes, often repetitively!), and for as long as they are living with us, we do have to watch them.

As an aside, MySpace is fun! I enjoy setting up my space (even if it is a little time-consuming! Can't wait to make it really cool'!), and I enjoy looking around. Plus, a lot of businesses, television shows, radio channels, music groups and the like all have MySpace accounts!

Learn more about this author, Sue Pione.
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