Jan 23 2007
MySpace Used to Protect Children
The much-maligned social networking site, MySpace has taken an important step in repairing its image:
Popular online social network MySpace said on Tuesday it will begin sending online alerts to users in certain U.S. regions to help find missing children as part of an expansion of plans to expand safeguards for users.
MySpace struck a partnership with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children to enable MySpace AMBER alerts, a program between the media and law enforcement to issue early warning broadcast bulletins in serious child abduction cases.
It is part of an upgrade by News Corp.-owned MySpace of safety features designed to address concerns of child safety advocates, some of whom say it has been slow to keep its many teenage members safe from adult predators.
Now this is an arrangement that makes complete sense. Consider the volume of MySpace users:
With 150 million profiles, MySpace is seen as one of the Web’s fastest-growing properties in terms of users. More than half of U.S. teens with online access use sites such as MySpace to stay in touch with friends, a recent Pew survey found.
Issuing missing child alerts to targeted areas via MySpace could be a huge help in recovery efforts. The question on my mind is, just how visible with these alerts be?
The Amber alerts, named after 9-year-old Amber Hagerman, who was kidnapped and murdered in 1996 in Texas, will appear in a small text box at the top of a profile, MySpace said. The alerts give MySpace users the option to get more information about the case, such as photos and information on suspects.
As a father, this news makes me very happy. While some may debate the potential success of issuing Amber Alerts on MySpace, the more you get the word out, the more likely you are to recover the child. With MySpace, you can reach millions of targeted users instantly for little or no cost. This one is a no-brainer.
