Why Schools Should Allow Social Networking…(Follow Up)

I blogged yesterday stating the merits of schools and school districts to allow students to access social media sites while in school. In doing my usual news search this morning, I found this and thought it was interesting to write about. Very timely.

The headline reads from NJ.com,

Facebook sparks fights at Union County high school, discussion on networking site’s risks

Oh man, just as I suspected. Controversy! The article goes on to say, “Administrators at Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School want to hold sessions for parents and students to talk about social networking websites after two lunchtime fights — sparked by disputes on Facebook — broke out in the school cafeteria.

“This goes further than bullying 30 or 40 years ago when you would get a bloody nose on the playground,” said Norman Whitehouse, president of the Scotch Plains-Fanwood school board. “A community is a family of sorts, and you want to look out for each other and make sure kids don’t feel harmed.”

The article goes on to say, “Jack Aiello, a psychology professor at Rutgers University who has studied the effects of social media, said problems arise online because messages can spread quickly and to a large group of people.

“It makes children even more vulnerable, because they are so concerned about what people think,” he said.

The clashes at the Union County high school came on the heels of an incident at the Terrill Middle School in Scotch Plains last month, when several students were given in-school suspensions for making fun of another student on Facebook, Superintendent Margaret Hayes said.

“Learning to get along with one another is part of growing up,” Hayes said. “This is something children work through and get past.”

While I think we would all agree that bullying is not a good thing, I still believe using social media in a controlled environment can be a powerful learning experience for a young person. I’m a firm believer in being where the students are, in this case online and social media, makes learning much more fun and interactive.

How Hackers and Spam Ruined Social Media…

Over the last month or so I remember hearing how Facebook and Twitter were hacked in to and disrupted for a period of time. Does this concern anyone else? Is it like when an insurance company or medical outlet misplaced your personal information or loses a lap top that had your information on it? Hackers and spammers are killing social media by getting in the way and disrupting the process.

From Mike Schaffner of Forbes magazine, “The reason for this isn’t just the novelty of it all wearing off. It’s more that it’s become less pleasant due to the amount of spam that is permeating the social media space, coupled with the overbearing commercialization that is taking place. Layer on top of this the erosion of privacy and it doesn’t look good. Even my college-age daughter, a prime demographic for social media, complains about these same issues.

Many of the people that I get as followers on Twitter seem to offer nothing more than a continual stream of advertisements. It seems that a growing number of “Internet marketers” are taking over Twitter, trying to get business in teaching people how to grow their follower counts and sell advertising.

It’s not that business doesn’t have a place on Twitter; it is possible to project a corporate presence in social media without it simply being a way to advertise. A good example is Scott Monty who heads up social media for Ford. Monty is very effective in getting Ford’s message out by talking with customers rather than just talking to customers.”

I completely agree with Mike. Once companies realized they could turn a profit from social media, they were all ears. Unfortunately a lot of spam has gotten in the way of things.

I lost my job because of Facebook…

Every work environment is different. While I don’t spend hours on Facebook while I’m at work, I have logged on during a typical work day. Some employers frown on using social media at work citing that it jeopardizes company security and decreases productivity across the board. That very well may be true but not in all cases, right? I guess it depends on the environment within which the employee works.

For example, LeClaire contends, “Public-relations and marketing firms — or PR and marketing divisions within larger enterprises — are among those who believe employees should be able to update their Facebook status at work.

As a PR firm, social media is a way of life for HMA Public Relations. Abbie Fink, vice president and general manager of the firm, said social networking is a critical component of how the company does business. In fact, she added, clients expect the firm to know and understand social media.

“More important to me than whether or not employees are using or viewing social media during work hours is remembering that although they may maintain personal Facebook and Twitter accounts, there is a very fine line between personal and professional in the online space,” Fink said. “You need to be careful what you post [keeping in mind that] your boss, your clients, your future boss, your grandmother… may all be on there, too.”

I don’t think a company will ever be able to completely police social media usage while at work. I think it comes down to two things. One, embracing social media to help the brand. Two, monitor usage and give employees a reasonable amount of time on social media.