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Published in the Spotlight Newspapers
Lifestyles in the Spotlight
July 2, 2008
Page 13
Trends & Technology
Susan S. Cheung
As a parent, I can’t bury my head in the sand when it comes to social networking. Although, as a “digital immigrant” – anyone over 28 who grew up before the digital age – I want to.
Social networking – think MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn – has become a way of life for many people. In the United Kingdom, 49 percent of all those under 18 online said they used social networking sites regularly; part of the findings in an Office of Communications’ report.
Despite age restrictions for registering (MySpace is 14 and Facebook is 13), the same report says, among children with Internet access, more than a quarter of 8-to-11-year-olds claimed to have a profile page on one of these sites.
In the U.S., according to an Alloy Media + Marketing report, some 71 percent of online 9-to-17-year-olds use social networking sites weekly.
It doesn’t surprise me that young people are expert social network surfers; after all, that demographic is known the so-called Generation M or Media Multitasking generation.
I on the other hand come from the betwixt and between generation that didn’t grow up holding a mouse, but started with slide rules and books of log tables and ended in high school or college learning how to use computers for the first time.
I’ve worked to get competent with technology, but at times I feel one step ahead of my children.
What will they call my children’s generation (both under five) and how adept will they be at media multitasking? Already, it’s part of their norm to see me or Daddy on the computer working or surfing.
Of course, they want to have a go and I admit it’s great to see their reactions as I help them move a turtle through the water to gobble the jelly fish or make the Tellytubbies appear and disappear from the screen.
By the time children reach preteens or tweens – generally defined as eight to 12 years – many are old hands at playing online educational games connected to their favorite TV shows.
Social networking isn’t news anymore, but tweens social networking (roaming about and chatting with friends online) is a growing and lucrative market; hot on the heels of the success of Club Penguin and Webkinz. Three years on, both sites have become extremely popular with tweens by word of mouth. They attract 5 to 14 year olds.
In 2007, the Walt Disney Company bought Club Penguin for $350M as they look to expand markets abroad and through promotions on Disney-branded sites.
I asked one of my friends in the Capital District who has twin girls of 10 and a boy of 7 about her kids’ favorite social network, Webkinz. They like it because it’s fun and never boring, with a variety of games and things to do. They’re allowed 20 minutes each to play on the site and don’t think it’s addictive, contrary to what their parents think.
As I get more familiar with tweens social networking, I can equate it to hanging out on the street corner with my friends when I was that age, but now tweens are socializing in the virtual world.
Whether tweens are using Club Penguin, Webkinz or Moshi Monster, a hit Web site for 2008, many of them use a similar formula: play simple games, earn some kind of currency and spend it on decorations for their online pad, whether that’s an igloo or house.
Club Penguin – a site where your tween can waddle through a fantasy world and interact with other penguins of their choice – charges a $5.95 monthly subscription and you get an ad-free site, advanced features and you can set limits on the time your tween spends playing.
In a brilliant stroke of marketing, Webkinz, another ad-free site, requires you to buy a small plush toy (produced by the Ganz company), which has a special code on its label that allows your tween access to their identical online animal character in the “Webkinz World.”
I can see how these sites can hook preadolescence in with great graphics, fun activities and the challenge of earning points or “cash” to create their “pet’s” room. It’s absorbing with the added bonus of socializing with your peer group.
Advocates for social networks say these sites allow children to communicate in a ‘controlled’ environment. On many sites, users can chat online only by exchanging pre-constructed phrases, such as “What is your favorite color?” from the drop-down menu. Parents can allow some free-flowing chat, but this is heavily monitored by employees of the sites who look out for confidential information and language.
The truth is some parents probably have to do media literacy boot camp to engage with their children’s 21st century computer habits. You may not understand the social networking needs of your tween, but you have to be aware of it, interested and hands on. Even as these sites are set up as safer sites, there are many dangers ahead for your preteen as he or she navigates the virtual world.
Follow common sense tips on Internet safety and happy networking:
Be informed – learn the terminology and how to navigate the site. Many provide parent pages that explain usage and safety features.
Talk to your tween about Internet safety.
Get involved – pay attention to where your child is going online. Keep the computer in a public area within sight.
Don’t post personal information online for the whole world to see.
You may be monitoring, but what about when your child goes and plays at her friend’s house. Talk to other parents.
