Social Networking (Week 2 Thing 4)

I have been using social networking websites for some time, mainly sports forum, such as British soccer and US NBA. Through these sites I can get in touch with people with the same interest, discuss the good and bad of the team and game, and even view game photo and video. It is important to me that in NZ soccer and basketball are not as popular as rugby and have low media coverage, and I can't afford Sky TV. I have also tried Myspace, Bebo and the like and found that there are a lot of stuff in the sites and you can spend hours browsing (if you are interested in the content). They are more targeted to teens and teens-at-hearts(unfortunately I am not). I particular have difficulty with the style of English in some posts.

A post from Bebo

Although I am not a fan of Myspace and Bebo, I personally have no problem with them either. But there are growing concerns in the society about the gang culture portrait by many posts (rap music video, school bullying and street fight videos). Other concerns about the services are the same that have motivated previous Internet regulatory initiatives: underage access to objectionable material and fears about child predators. In USA, there are legislation in some states prohibiting school and public libraries to allow youngsters to access social networking sites.

According to Sunday Star Time (27 May 2007), over 2000 schools across the country have blocked students from accessing social networking sites. The ban come after growing concern about photos and videos of fights and bullying in schools and playgrounds.