As a mother of an underage college student, this scares the heck out of me!
From The Hartford Courant
We have met Big Brother, and he is us.
The rise of social networking sites such as Facebook and the ubiquitous cellphone camera have combined to create a society under surveillance.
For decades, people were concerned about omnipotent governments or colossal corporations peering into every corner of their lives. These days, it could be a friend, co-worker or relative that lays bare your life to the world.
"Big Brother has come in through the back door," said BJ Fogg, who teaches classes on the psychology of Facebook at Stanford University.
It's something Theodore and Laura Berent are learning the hard way. Police have charged the Glastonbury couple with nine counts each of permitting minors to possess alcohol during an 18th birthday party for their daughter at their home.
As dubious as the idea may have been, Laura Berent reportedly stood at the front door and collected car keys from anyone who planned to drink. In hindsight, it may have been wise to also collect their camera phones.
Photos of the February party posted on Facebook were eventually shown to Glastonbury High School officials, who alerted police. More than 30 teenagers attended the party, police said. Five students who were on school teams were kicked off or sanctioned.
Telephone messages left for the Berents and their attorney Wednesday were not returned.
Glastonbury police Sgt. Joel B. White said police frequently use social networking sites in criminal investigations.
"I don't think most people grasp how much personal information can be gleaned off these websites," White said.
The incident illustrates the cultural gulf between young people who have grown up with the Internet and their parents, who often come to it in fits and starts. Facebook had been exclusively for students — first for those in college, then in high school — since its inception at Harvard University in 2004, but anyone over 13 has been allowed to join since October 2006. Opening the door to parents was bemoaned by many Facebook users who had come to cherish it as a place to display their youthful shenanigans.
Vanessa Van Petten, 23, who writes about youths and technology at her blog, www.onteenstoday.com, said the lines that traditionally separated home life, social life and public life have been blurred for young people.
"There's the idea that everything and anything I do can be viewed, so nothing I do is private," Van Petten said.
Annie Vaughn, a Trinity College freshman from Los Angeles, said when her friends are getting dressed for a night out, they may consider what will look good on Facebook.
"You go out at night kind of expecting the night to be documented," Vaughn said.
The teenagers who attended the Glastonbury party may have anticipated it would end up on the Internet, but the adults involved may not have seen it coming.
"For parents, the question is, 'Why would you put that on the Internet?'" Van Petten said. "For teenagers it's, 'Why wouldn't I?'"
Facebook users, who now number about 175 million worldwide, can limit access to their profiles to authorized "friends," creating another skirmish line between parents and their children.
What do you do when mom or dad wants to "friend" you?
Ben Speicher, a Trinity sophomore, said he would be reluctant to say yes, even though he doesn't have anything in particular to hide. But in the evolving online social order, he said he's close to some of his friends' parents and has allowed them access, with a caveat.
"I wouldn't 'friend' them if I knew they were snooping," Speicher said.
Media reports of people getting arrested after advertising their own indiscretions, from vandalism to drug and weapons possession, are increasingly common, although it's rare for parents to get swept up in it.
Negotiating the perils of social networking sites has become yet another right of passage for young people. Van Petten says she advises teenagers to make pacts with each other about what they will and will not post about each other to avoid problems.
"They don't think it can happen to them," she said, "until it happens."
Copyright © 2009, The Hartford Courant
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