The Dangers of Social Media in Libraries and in the Public

As librarians, we are tasked with giving information to those who seek it. With the advent of the Internet and the world wide web, it would seem that we are given a gift of seeking out anything we find useful in our daily lives. Yet, as with all weapons, when put in the wrong hands, it can do nothing but harm.  Social media has now found a way to turn connecting people to one another into a danger zone. Cyber bullying is on the rise with little supervision or firewalls in place to block such acts. During most occasions, the culprits are not adults harassing one another.  According to Ramesh’s article, “cyber stalking is the new face of this evil that experts believe is mainly because of increased usage of social media among school children” (Ramesh, 2012).

For libraries, it becomes a question of how to monitor public use. Libraries have computers for patrons to use, but is it necessarily a librarian’s duty to watch over a young patron’s shoulder and watch what a child is submitting online? And as it is not only children who are prone to using computers, should every patron be monitored with what they send and receive? 

In the Gale article “Cyberbullying,” the definition of the specific type of abuse is laid out.  “Cyberbullying is the use of the Internet, cell phones, or other electronic communication devices to spread harmful or embarrassing information about another person. This information can be in the form of text, photos, or videos. Internet safety organizations make a distinction between cyberbullying and cyberharassment. The latter term refers to harassing behaviors targeted at adults. The term cyberbullying refers to the behavior when it is targeted at minors” (Cyberbullying, 2010).   Hmm…so the public could not only be in danger, but could be the cause as well.  So how does one stop this vicious circle?

The best advice is for everyone (especially children) to be on guard when working on the Internet, whether at home or in a public setting.  Be smart when online and using social media since one never knows who may be on the other end of the chat. Colin Thakur of Durban University of Technology set out to do this in September 2012 when he gave a speech on web dangers.  “I consider myself to be a digital activist and was surprised, even annoyed by the lack of advisory material for parents in the cyber world”  (Talk to inform on webdangers, 2012).  He quotes basic smarts that one teaches children when being confronted with strangers. “We taught our children not to tell strangers their telephone numbers, yet they innocently post pictures on Facebook, of themselves in front of their house with the street address visible. A cyber predator now has information to stalk and befriend the child.”

In my humble opinion, this leads back into the question that yes, there should be public use of information, but to what extent and what restrictions should be in place? And how in this process should children be affected (and made a part of)?