Cyber_Bullying

With the advent of the Internet , the world became a global village and it has created an entirely different world of social communications especially for young people . Young and old people alike can stay in touch with just about everyone - family , friends and classmates by using email , SMS text messaging , or chat rooms . Although most of these interactions are positive and friendly , there are some instances that these tools are used to antagonize , torment and intimidate others especially children . Such action is considered cyber bullying . The Internet can easily provide anonymity in terms of bullying others where in a face-to-face scenario one may hesitate to do so for fear of repercussions and punishment from the authorities . Whereas before , child bullies can only torment other kids within the confines of school . As soon as the tormented kid gets home , he can seek refuge in his home . But this is not the case nowadays . The Internet has provided another avenue for bullies to intimidate and torment kids away from adult supervision and punishment . It has become the perfect tool to reach out anonymously to just about anybody , at anytime and anyplace . The home which was once a refuge to those tormented kids has been broken from the pressures of peers and bullies . Because of the anonymity afforded by online communication , children feel free to do anything that they would not normally do in the real world . Thus , they feel that they can torment and antagonize just about everybody because of this anonymity without worrying that they will be identified and punished for their actions . There are several ways in which young people bully others through the Internet . They send e-mails or instant messages containing insults or threats directly to a person . They may also spread hateful comments about a person through e-mail , instant messaging or postings on Web sites and online diaries (Media Awareness Network . Cyber bullying is admittedly challenging adult authority because of their failure to monitor and guide children more so with those using mobile phones that are web-enabled . Hence , victims get harassed both in school and at home because of its accessibility . Because of the rising cases of cyber bullying , more and more people are getting concerned , especially parents of the victims of cyber bullies . According to a recent survey of 1 ,000 youth commissioned by the organization , one in three teenagers ages 12 to 17 and one in six children ages 6 to 11 have found themselves victims of cyberbullying--translating to about 13 million youth nationwide (Anne Broache . Hence , anticrime groups and citizens are urging lawmakers to pass new laws that would specifically target cyber bullying . However , such endeavor is met with strong oppositions coming from advocates of free speech . According to them , if such law against cyber bullying is passed , it would ultimately be tantamount to the curtailment of the freedom of expression and speech . Parents of the victims of cyber bullies on the other hand disagree . The emotional abuse is more difficult compared with the physical...