[LM_NET] OMG! More Reefer Madness ~ Just Say "No"

[Nancy Willard <nwillard@CSRIU.ORG>]

No, I have not yet gotten my breakfast or coffee - but this in my email
inbox from Enough is Enough. These folks are very active in Virginia.

"It seems that everyday, we receive another report of a missing child. 
Regardless of age, race, gender, location, or academic achievement, no child
is immune.  While the vast majority of cases of abductions do not involve
the Internet, in today's tech-connected world, it's critically important for
kids to guard personal information that could make them a target.  In a
recent survey, one in ten youth posted or shared information on a public
blog or social networking site about places they typically go.  The majority
of teens today share photos and videos of themselves on a number of public
spaces, placing them at increased risk to being targeted by an Internet
predator, cyberbully or identity thief.  Please take time to
educate the children under your care about staying safe in their on- and
offline worlds.  As parents, teachers and other caring adults, we all have a
role to play in protecting children.  We are the first line of defense!"

This attempts to raise fears about predation and abduction that are not
grounded in the research data. Look here:
http://www.unh.edu/ccrc/internet-crimes/ This is Crimes Against Children
Research Center. Here is what they say: "The publicity about online
³predators² who prey on naive children using trickery and violence is
largely inaccurate.  Internet sex crimes involving adults and juveniles more
often fit a model of statutory rape ­ adult offenders who meet, develop
relationships with, and openly seduce underage teenagers -- than a model of
forcible sexual assault or pedophilic child molesting."

The kind of material that teens might post that create risk is
sexually-inviting material. NOT information about where they live and places
they typically go. There are reasons to be concerned about different kinds
of material that students might post. But it is very important to address
generally - NOT in the context of fear of predator abduction.

More from this email:

Caution your children about posting:

"*     Personal or Contact Information: Your child's full name,   address,
phone number, passwords, and financial identity information should only be
provided on a secure site and under parental supervision.
*    Intimate personal information: Private, personal and sensitive
information (such as a teen's journal) should not be posted at all and
should only be shared in private emails with a trusted personal friend.
*    Reputation-damaging information or images: Explicit or suggestive
pictures, etc. should never be posted or sent."

Now I am more than a little irritated about this because this is a list of
different types of information that has been taken directly from MY material
- with MY headings (intimate personal, reputation damaging) - without ANY
CITATION regarding source! My material is not yet published. I shared this
privately with these folks.

But in fact, I do not present my guidance in this area in the context of
fear of predators - and would not want my name used in association with
spreading this inaccurate fear.

Note again the unwarranted fear communicated about posting information
associated with places they go - associated with concerns of predator
abduction. This is the kind of Reefer Madness information that will
interfere with establishing 21st Century schools with web 2.0 technologies.

Nancy
-- 
Nancy Willard, M.S., J.D.
Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use
http://csriu.org
http://cyberbully.org
http://cyber-safe-kids.com
http://csriu.wordpress.com
nwillard@csriu.org

Cyberbullying and Cyberthreats: Responding to the Challenge of Online Social
Aggression, Threats, and Distress (Research Press)

Cyber-Safe Kids, Cyber-Savvy Teens: Helping Young People Learn to Use the
Internet Safely and Responsibly (Jossey-Bass)

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