Facebook Privacy and Athletes

The Internet has made many things easier for students, parents, and basically everyone. But along with the positive things that the Internet has brought along, it has also brought upon many difficulties for high school and college students. The Internet is a dangerous place where everything and anything can be found. You can create any type of website and put anything you want on it. Facebook was created a few years back, and its popularity is continuing to draw in more students and even older adults. If you were to go into a high school and ask the students if they had a Facebook, the majority would raise their hands. Facebook has created something like a utopia for teenagers on the Internet. You can say what you want and be whomever you want on Facebook. A recent problem going around is that teens have been misusing the advantages that Facebook gives you. This has been causing athletic coaches to monitor the athletes Facebook commenting and pictures.

I honestly think that is violating the athlete’s privacy. This just doesn’t make sense to me. If a student was to comment a friend venting about a teacher, then I mean obviously they are going to say things that they don’t mean. What the coaches don’t realize is that students also vent to their friends over the phone. They will call their friend and say all the over-dramatic things and then it will be over, they will have forgotten about the issue by the next day. Yet, I don’t hear about the teachers or coaches monitoring phone calls, both ways your equally guilty of saying derogatory things. I mean there’s an extent to where the “venting” comments turn into threats. If a student posts something that doesn’t even sound threatening, but is offensive to the teacher, then the teacher shouldn’t do anything. Teachers probably vent to their “special someone “ all the time about their students, whether their student is a pain or just never pays attention. It isn’t fair if the teacher or coaches can monitor the student’s sites, if the student doesn’t reserve the right to do so with the teachers. Most teachers do not have Facebook, but most derogatory words are through word of mouth. There have been many incidents told on the News about students holding in their aggression and going crazy. They brought guns to school and killed teachers and other students. Yet there are also stories of teachers killing students. . It’s a mutual action.

What goes on outside of the school boundaries shouldn’t be taken care of at school. On the other hand, if the issue or argument gets to a more serious level and is affecting the student’s academic performance, the teacher should get involved. Something I just recently learned was that if you post anything on the Internet, it is public. Even if you delete, it still remains in the Internet system. I will agree, Facebook has made it easier for teenagers to call each other names. Most of the rude things we say to one another on Facebook, we wouldn’t say to the other persons face. It is easier to say the things you feel on the Internet because you just type it out and press “send”. You don’t have to worry about the fear or intimidation of the other person. I would have to say I am on both sides of the argument. I think that students reserve the right to privacy. If the student is posting provocative pictures or derogatory comments and other students or athletes find it bothersome and then tell the coach. The coach should be able to take action and reprimand them. Obviously, there are many different ways of seeing the argument and I’m sure a teacher’s view of this subject would be quite different than a students. This is a difficult issue to discuss because you go can go in so many directions with it. It is hard to stay on one side of the argument because on both sides there’s always another problem.