It seems as though we hear about cyberbullying more these days then bullying, as though cyberbullying is the only kind of bullying. Was the avenue or venue for bullies ever talked about as much as it is today? To me it seemed as though the internet is just a newish place for people to act out in ways that they already have been for years. I completely agree with Danah Boyd when she wrote in “Bullying” Has Little Resonance with Teenagers that

“technology is not radically changing what’s happening; it’s simply making what’s happening far more visible.”

But after a little more research I’m feeling I’m a little bit wrong. Maybe cyberbullying is more prevalent today than bullying was 20 or 30 years ago. I still agree with many thing s Danah had to say but I also feel as though the internet has created a platform that only makes it easier for the bully within to come out. Recent cyber bullying statistics certainly make it seem as though it is a growing thing. The ability to comment on what people say and be anonymous adds a whole new level to bullying that the public has never dealt with before. So how do we deal with it and how should bullies be punished? Laws aren’t getting to the root of the problem. They are mostly using scare tactics to keep people from bullying. Why do people desire to, isn’t that the question? Institutions, public and private seem to be chomping at the bit to stop cyberbullying as though that’s where the problem starts. My classmate Dave Hoover shared and interesting case with me a couple of weeks ago that involves a school district in California. The district of Glendale apparently hired a firm to monitor their students social media accounts. I find this very interesting because social media accounts are mostly utilized outside of school hours which really brings into question the authority the school has to hire this surveillance firm in the first place. This case in Glendale also rolls right back into questions of surveillance, what is being done with information being collected, and who has the right to collect it. I would rather not dive into the surveillance topic right now but it is important to consider how many of these cases deal with particular freedoms, whether they are a right to privacy or freedom of speech. With the case of cyberbullies we are dealing with freedom of speech. The difference is that your speech is now in text for everyone to read and even join in on. You can be held accountable in very different ways now that it is in print. Still, I’m more skeptical of how surveillance and scare tactics will help this situation. The internet and the venue isn’t the problem. I have a hard time believing cyberbullying is going to go anywhere unless empathy becomes a bigger part of our cultural practices.