Disney's smart to acquire Togetherville, which I called social-networking training wheels for families last spring, when the kids' social site launched. Why families and not just kids? Because kids under 13 hardly need training in online socializing – most start that at young ages, in online games and virtual worlds (like Disney's Club Penguin, which it acquired from a smart Canadian startup in … [Read more...] about Togetherville a great acquisition for Disney
social networking
Facebook an antidote for shyness: Study
A University of Texas study found that Facebook is helping people on the shy side of social. "Surveying 900 current and recent college graduates nationwide, Craig Watkins and Erin Lee of the Department of Radio-Television-Film at the University of Texas examined the impact of Facebook on users’ social lives," the New York Times reports. "Four to five years ago, Dr. Watkins said, young people’s … [Read more...] about Facebook an antidote for shyness: Study
How the Net industry can help get us all to Online Safety 3.0
This is great, an early sign of the Internet industry's piece of OS 3.0: what the popular teen social site MyYearbook.com is doing for Reachout.com, a nonprofit support and suicide-prevention site for teens on the social Web (it now has a US base too, but since its start in Australia, that country "has seen a 56% reduction in youth suicide rates," the site says). Here's how Reach Out describes … [Read more...] about How the Net industry can help get us all to Online Safety 3.0
A look at Facebook’s ‘hate & harassment’ triage
This will give parents an idea of what's involved in keeping things civil in a site with 500 million+ members: Facebook's “hate and harassment team," which is "part of a virtual police squad charged with taking down content that is illegal or violates [the site's] terms of service," handles about 2 million abuse reports a week, the New York Times reports. Facebook took writer Miguel Helft behind … [Read more...] about A look at Facebook’s ‘hate & harassment’ triage
Ally Pfeiffer’s ordeal … and ingenuity
Two things struck me about University of Hartford student Allison Pfeiffer's cyberbullying story: First, there was the smart parting advice she left with the Today Show's viewers last week after being interviewed about the cruel fake profile two fellow students created about her in Facebook: "Don't fight with the bully, fight for yourself." The second thing is how intelligently she went about … [Read more...] about Ally Pfeiffer’s ordeal … and ingenuity