NO
Bex Bailey, 17, member of Youth Parliament for Nottinghamshire
Online social networking is an extension of our community and a way of allowing us to connect with people from other communities. It allows us to easily keep in touch with distant friends and relatives. It gives people an opportunity to socialise from their own homes, at any time, but does not necessarily encourage them to stay at home rather than going out. Instead it means friends can talk to each other more easily (and often more cheaply as online messages are free) to arrange social events. Online social networking helps to make our communities stronger by building relationships and aiding communication.
NO
Honor Rhodes, director of development, the Family and Parenting Institute
It is easy to demonise what we do not understand and to blame new phenomena for society's ills. Our job is to help children use social networking sites productively. Children enjoy the sites because they provide them with friendships that are not regulated by adults. This presents benefits and risks so we need to help children to learn to protect themselves from cyber bullying and online grooming. As adults, we should be moderating and helping children secure the balance between electronic friendships and other "real world" friendships.
YES
Sue Palmer, education consultant and author of Toxic Childhood
It's the latest manifestation of a consumerist, screen-based culture that doesn't give a damn about community. The corporate giants who control the screens don't see us as human beings anyway - just units of production and consumption. Their social networks encourage vulnerable young people to view themselves and their "friends" as commodities, which isn't likely to encourage empathy or social capital.
And since many under-tens now spend five to six hours a day on this and other screen-based activities we can expect more vulnerable young people with every passing year.
NO
Lucie Russell, director of campaigns and participation, YoungMinds
Social networking brings people together and is an enabling and empowering tool for communication. It can be a particularly useful way for young people to talk to each other and provide one another with support. It is also a very effective way of building movements for social change. However as with all communication methods, there are drawbacks and so there needs to be mechanisms in place to prevent bullying or exploitation of young people.
