Anti-bully Campaigns

In doing some research this weekend on cyberbullying I found that both MTV and Nickelodeon have launched campaigns to help teens and parents deal with this problem. Nickelodeon’s on-air campaign features some of the stars from the television network. These stars offer advice on what to do when confronted with abusive texts, emails, or Facebook messages. On their website Nick is also promoting Common Sense’s Rules of the Road for Kids.

I first heard about MTV’s campaign from Lauren Le Vine’s post in Tonic. MTV apparently launched the website A Thin Line back in February. On this website you can find information about dealing with cyberbullying and how to keep your privacy online. What I found interesting about this website is the new tool they just launched. Over The Line allows teenagers to submit texts, photos, emails, and comments online that may or may not be offensive. Other members of this community can then rate these statements “over” “on” or “under” to determine which comments are actually comments which are offensive. I think that this new feature is great for teens. It gives them the power to decide what is over the line and not the power to adults who may jump to conclusions too quickly out of the desire to protect their child.

Another interesting aspect about the article in Tonic is the quote they use from Miley Cyrus. She has recently starred in a film released April 1^st called Trust. In this film she plays a 14 year old girl who is sexually abused by a man who lied on the internet to her. I am really interested to watch this movie but I think the effect it may have had on Cyrus’s opinion on the internet is a little extreme. In the Tonic article they claim her advice to teens about using the internet is “Don’t go on the Internet, it’s dangerous, it’s not fun, it wastes your life, and you should be outside playing sports or something.” I wonder if this has anything to do with the movie she just starred in or how much of this advice may have to do with some of the cyberbullying she has experienced as a celebrity. Either way I think telling teenagers to not use the internet is a little naïve. Teenagers are growing up in a digital age and it’s not going to change. Instead of telling kids to get off the internet we need to be promoting campaigns like the ones Nickelodeon and MTV have launched.