Teens Trading Their Lives for Internet Immortality
What would your teen do to get noticed?
The Internet is full of writings, pictures, and videos by teens who are hoping to get their "fifteen minutes" of fame. Unfortunately, some teens equate fame with infamy – and act accordingly. Some teens post violent or hate-filled writings or promiscuous pictures in order to attract attention. Others, experts worry, may be committing suicide.
In a little more than a year Bridgend County, Wales mourned the loss of 17 young people, all of whom committed suicide by hanging. Law-enforcement officers working the case found that some of the deceased might have been in contact via the social networking site Bebo. Two weeks before her own suicide, one teen posted a tribute on the profile page of another who had hanged himself: "R.I.P …gonna miss ya! allways remember the gd times! love ya x."
Initially, the tribute probably attracted little notice, as tributes of this type are not uncommon on the Internet. Social networking sites are full of profiles which are actually cyber memorials to dead loved ones. Websites such as www.gonetoosoon.co.uk and www.mydeathspace.com offer the bereaved an opportunity to set-up pages with pictures, poems, art work, and messages honoring the deceased. Even months after a death, visitors will drop by the site and leave messages for the deceased to let them know they are not forgotten.
These cyber memorials can offer the memorialized an Internet fame and immortality which might seem more appealing than the every day angst of teenage life. Although suicide is at the extreme end of the spectrum for what most teens would attempt to gain attention and we certainly need to take into consideration personality types and mental health issues that could lead to such extreme behavior, we should be aware that many teens dream of attaining Internet popularity. However, teens should be warned that notorious behavior does not often become real-life success.
