By Kelsey Hor
Staff Reporter
Do you think there is something wrong with parents who post about their young kids all the time? Do you think it is right to post photos of the kids you babysit on the Internet?
“I personally only post about my child on special occasions,” said senior Andrew Roach. “For example, the last posting of him on my page was when he turned six months, because it was a milestone for him in his young time spent living so far.”
Other students feel that posting about their young loved-ones is to show their affection and love for them.
“I’m obsessed with my baby nephew, so I want everyone to see why he’s just so cute,” said junior Brooke Lopez. “My brother doesn’t really care because I ask before I post a picture of my nephew just out of respect and privacy for my brother and sister-in-law.”
Some faculty members think this topic can affect individuals’ lives, distinguishing a fine line between private and public.
“I think that this whole debate shows that people still have lots of different ideas about what kinds of spaces social media is or should be,” said Communications and Media Arts Professor Sara Ross. “The way that they often cross the line between public and private means that, if you post those cute photos of your toddler learning to potty train, they might come back to haunt them someday. Given this blurred line between public and private, I think it makes sense to take some common sense precautions about what you post and how you identify your children on social media.”
Many students and faculty say that it is not only a concern about public and private matters, but also an issue regarding the virtual world versus reality.
“In general, I think that when parents post about their children, they do so because they are proud of them and want to share their accomplishments and fond memories,” said Professor William Yousman, Communications and Media Arts Professor and Assistant Director of Media Literacy and Digital Culture. “So no, I don’t think there is usually anything wrong with this, although I do have concerns about people in general being too obsessed with social media, at the expense sometimes of other aspects of our lives.”
Some individuals say that although they love to post about their children, they also take into the consideration the precautions that come along with it.
“So for children until the age of 10, I believe it is still inappropriate because your child hasn’t even got a chance to start their own lives and you place them in the spot light for everyone on social media to constantly view,” said Roach. “Children are just that, children, by posting about your child frequently, you also make them vulnerable to dangerous aspects of life that come with social media postings. I believe parents should only post about their children on an occasional base and wait until their child reaches a reasonable decision-making age to create their own accounts for their own postings of one’s self.”
