Social Networking is a term that describes online websites used to connect people to other people. Users create personal profiles that allow them to be linked with other people that have similar interests. MySpace is probably one of the best-known social networking sites.

To say that social networking is popular with teens and “tweens” is an understatement. Kids love the many features available from sites such as MySpace that allow them to creatively express themselves (upload writing, images, video remixes, etc.), share, and keep in touch with friends. While there can be benefits to social networking, there are also potential dangers when posting information.

Parents can help their teenagers use social networking sites safely by learning more about websites such as MySpace.com or Facebook.com. The Internet Keep Safe Coalition (i-KeepSafe), a prominent Internet safety organization, and MySpace have teamed up to take the mystery out of social networking and Web 2.0 (read-write web) by creating a series of short videos. The topics covered include:

• Basics of Web 2.0
• Social Networking
• Social Networking Tools
• How to Set up and Protect a Profile
• How to Report Problems (cyberbullying, threats, online predators)

We encourage parents to visit – with their children – the iKeepSafe website at: http://www.ikeepsafe.org/PRC/videotutorials/myspace/index.html and view this excellent series.