This is an important next step for suicide prevention as well as social media. Facebook and the US's National Suicide Prevention Lifeline have just announced a partnership that links Facebook users expressing suicidal thoughts directly to live chat with a crisis counselor at the Lifeline. Before, and like other social-media services, Facebook would just send the distressed user the Lifeline's … [Read more...] about Will the global village have a ‘911’?
Search Results for: suicide
Cyberbullying: The view from behind a kids’ Web site
As a parent or educator, have you ever wondered what bullying and harassment look like from the other side of your kids' favorite online spaces – to the people who run them, moderate the action, and get those "abuse reports" users click on for all kinds of reasons? Moderators and community managers have an indispensable perspective to bring to the public discussion about cyberbullying, so I'm … [Read more...] about Cyberbullying: The view from behind a kids’ Web site
New state anti-bullying law challenges schools
The New Jersey anti-bullying law passed after the suicide death of Tyler Clementi went into effect this week and is "considered the toughest legislation against bullying in the nation," the New York Times reports. This is good news for New Jersey parents of targeted students who have found schools unresponsive but apparently tough news for schools. School officials worry that the legal requirement … [Read more...] about New state anti-bullying law challenges schools
A cyberbullying epidemic? No!
Please note: There is no cyberbullying epidemic. Like author and anti-bullying expert Rosalind Wiseman, I can't believe how many times I've been asked about "the epidemic" and what's to be done about it. Rosalind suggests that the epidemic is in bad PSAs and "educational" videos aimed at bullying prevention. I agree, but also suggest that we've been experiencing an epidemic of news coverage of … [Read more...] about A cyberbullying epidemic? No!
The teen sexting ‘trainwreck’ & state laws
US Rep. Anthony Weiner's very public personal disaster story has made sexting top-of-mind again, but there's good news in all this: More and more states are considering "relaxing penalties for teen sexting," as the Boston.com headline put it, because lawmakers throughout the US are now recognizing that "the problem of teen sexting didn’t exist when they enacted harsh punishments for child porn and … [Read more...] about The teen sexting ‘trainwreck’ & state laws