The New Digital Media is a powerful and seemingly unstoppable force. It has the ability to influence large groups of people. Many of these influences are positive, many are negative. For instance, I am sure we all heard about the “baby in the balloon basket” hoax. Although there are much more horrible things happening in the world (a list would be insufficient), everyone in America was worried about that kid. Similar to this misuse of media is the example of “Lonely Girl” in the text “Young People, Ethics, and the New Digital Media.” Like everything that composes our existence, there are justifiable positives and equally verifiable negatives. This is clearly illuminated in the text “Young People, Ethics, and the New Digital Media” in which the promises and perils of New Digital Media are explored. After reading the the text, more specifically the example of “Zoe us[ing] Zee to write more openly about her feelings and experiences and to explore alternative identities,” I could not help but think of a quote I recently examined from Hawthorne’s The Scarlett Letter: “No man for any considerable period can wear one face to himself and another to the multitude, without finally getting bewildered as to which may be the true.” When we “play” on-line, we are presenting a “face” to the “multitude” and in this sense, the “playground” is safe (privacy, close friends, parental guidance, etc) and dangerous (no privacy, strangers, lake of parental control, etc). Therefore, should it be the responsibility of educators to implement instruction on “good-play” on-line in an attempt to counteract the bad? Another interesting thing in the text was the notion of regulating cyberspace. These regulators being The Blogger’s Code of Conduct (created by bloggers) and the Deleting Outline Predators Act (introduced by legislatures). Who should set the guidelines of conduct?
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2 comments for “Digital “Playground”: teeter totters are fun but sand can get in your eyes . . .”
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I think it’s interesting that you consider the possibility of educators implementing instruction on “good-play.” Initially, I thought of this as something parents would be responsible for, not unlike “stranger danger.” Explaining to their kids the safety precautions they should take on the internet and how, having a different persona online, like Zoe, can have a negative impact. Then I realized that maybe parents aren’t necessarily as well-versed in the world of internet safety as instructors may be. I also realized that oftentimes, teenagers are creating these alternate personalities to defy their parents; parents telling them “rules” might cause them to rebel even further. I think the best situation would be if parents explained to their kids the risks involved in various online activities and if schools reinforced this.
I like your quote from the “Scarlet Letter.” That story, written 150 years ago is still relevant today. The woman in the story who wore the scarlet letter is similar today to people who are creating a persona in cyberspace. It’s funny how times moves forward but issues of identity remain, relatively speaking, the same. As an educator I sometimes get confused by the lack of parental involvement; particularly with regards to Internet exposure. Whose place, let alone job, is it to support and guide students when they navigate on the Internet? Fifty years ago that responsibility (ethics, conduct) remained in the realm of the parent. Today, this responsibility seems to be shifting to the public sector; teachers, counselors.