If Your Kids Are Awake, They’re Probably Online

This from the New York Times:

The average young American now spends practically every waking minute — except for the time in school — using a smart phone, computer, television or other electronic device, according to a new study from the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Those ages 8 to 18 spend more than seven and a half hours a day with such devices, compared with less than six and a half hours five years ago, when the study was last conducted. And that does not count the hour and a half that youths spend texting, or the half-hour they talk on their cellphones.

And because so many of them are multitasking — say, surfing the Internet while listening to music — they pack on average nearly 11 hours of media content into that seven and a half hours. “I feel like my days would be boring without it,” said Francisco Sepulveda, a 14-year-old Bronx eighth grader who uses his smart phone to surf the Web, watch videos, listen to music — and send or receive about 500 texts a day.

The study’s findings shocked its authors, who had concluded in 2005 that use could not possibly grow further, and confirmed the fears of many parents whose children are constantly tethered to media devices. It found, moreover, that heavy media use is associated with several negatives, including behavior problems and lower grades.

The third in a series, the study found that young people’s media consumption grew far more in the last five years than from 1999 to 2004, as sophisticated mobile technology like iPods and smart phones brought media access into teenagers’ pockets and beds.

Dr. Michael Rich, a pediatrician at Children’s Hospital Boston who directs the Center on Media and Child Health, said that with media use so ubiquitous, it was time to stop arguing over whether it was good or bad and accept it as part of children’s environment, “like the air they breathe, the water they drink and the food they eat.” ...

Video: Profiles of Generation M(2)

This video explores the powerful force that media can be in the lives of teens and tweens. The three young people who are profiled explain what types of media they use—such as smart phones, computers, TV, video games—how much time they spend with media and what impact it has on their lives.

New Sites Take Younger Kids Online

Social-Networking Sites Introduce

Younger Kids To Virtual Communities,

Consumerism And Safety Issues

(AP) This past spring, 10-year-old Adam Young joined other tweens on Club Penguin, playing games, throwing virtual snowballs and chatting with fellow kids who appear onscreen as plump cartoon penguins. A few weeks later, Adam asked Mom to pay $5 a month for extra features, such as decorating his online persona's igloo.

Karen Young demanded to learn more about what some have billed as "training wheels" for the MySpace generation. She spent time on the site with Adam and consulted with her sister, the mother of another daily visitor. "I said, 'Well, what is it? What does it involve?'" Young recalled.

"I wanted him to show me what he wanted and what it was about." Drawing preteens as young as 6 or 7, sites like Club Penguin and Webkinz are forcing parents to decide at what age they are willing to let their children roam about and interact with friends online.

This from CBS News.
ABOVE: Six-year-old Mark Barakat plays a game on the Webkinz Web site at his home in Falls Church, Va., July 11, 2007. Children take care of a virtual pet, keeping it happy, healthy and well-fed by "buying" food, toys and amenities with Webkinz cash, which is earned by playing games and fulfilling various tasks. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Kids Don't Tell Parents the Truth about Online Activities

A Webroot survey shows

more than half of kids are shopping online, while 43% of teens using social network sites have been solicited by a stranger in the past year.

Do you know what your kids are doing online? A new study shows you probably don't.
According to research by Webroot Software, what parents think their kids are doing online and what kids say they're doing online are often two different things.

"Without proper parental guidance, children can put themselves at risk, compromise valuable family information, or be the sources of bad behavior like illegally downloading videos or music or bullying," said Mike Irwin, COO of Webroot Software, in a statement. "The good news here is that these potential problems can be largely avoided if parents apply the same vigilance to the online world as in the offline world. Direct and ongoing conversations with our kids, and establishing guidelines with the help of the right technology, will go a long way in supporting good judgment."

More than 70% of the surveyed children, ages 11 to 17, said their parents ask them about their online activities, but they may not be getting accurate answers.

According to Webroot:

• More than half of the teens surveyed said they buy things online.
• But 71% of parents said their children never buy anything over the Internet.
• Forty percent of the kids said they use instant messaging and social networking websites, like MySpace and Facebook everyday.
• But only 30% of the parents said their children participate in these sites.
• And 45% of the kids say they spend an average of three or more hours on the Internet a day.
• But 76% of parents polled said their children spend an average of two hours or less on the Internet.
• Forty-three percent of teens who use social networking sites said a stranger invited them to meet within the past year.
• At the same time, nearly 40% of children ages 11 to 17 reported receiving a sexually explicit e-mail or pop-up advertisement within the past year.
• Nearly 100% of the children surveyed said they use e-mail.

This from Information Week.