Social Networking - Blessing or Curse?

I shared this free e-text with the young women I advise in my youth group (ages 10-20) since pretty much all of them are on Facebook. A large concern we have dealt with as adult advisers is making sure that the girls are being cautious in what they put online, making sure it's appropriate (as they are role models to other girls in the organization, etc.), and helping them stay safe online. Here's the quick overview of what the text is about:

Help teens ‘own their space’ online. Whether you are a parent, caregiver, or educator, you can keep up with the latest computer and online safety issues and help kids learn to avoid them. In partnership with security expert and author, Linda McCarthy, we offer a free downloadable version of her new book, “Own Your Space – Keep Yourself and Your Stuff Safe Online.” Written for Internet savvy “tweens” and teens specifically, this book is also a useful resource for the adults they rely on.

This week's readings/viewings made me think back to this text and the situation that we've been dealing with in particular with a girl who has a "youth group approved" profile and a "private social life" profile. The same principles apply as in "The Online Divide" - if you are going to have two profiles for professional and social life, then you need to be consistent with who you add as a "friend" on that profile, and make sure your privacy settings are in place to protect yourself from potential embarrassment/repercussions in your professional life. These things seem pretty commonsensical to me, but clearly, if there are so many guides and articles addressing them, there must be a lot of misguided people out there on social networking sites.

I was interested in reading "Hail to the Tweet" because I had both President Obama and the White House on my friends list back when I was on myspace. Heck, I even had Obama as a friend before he was elected - that's how I stayed up to date on his campaign and viewpoints. Thinking about it now, adding Obama as a friend also served as a virtual bumper sticker, declaring my support for his candidacy.

I am really excited that the White House is contributing to so many digital forums because that is where so many people get their information now - might as well get it from the source. Plus, President Obama is a techie - remember his Blackberry obsession?