Growing Up Online Summary

Part One:
The internet. It’s a whole mew, alternate world where anyone can escape to. You have a whole new persona where no one knows who you really are, but love your alternate ego. Or, you can show a side of yourself, your real, true self. The real you you’re afraid to show to everyone around you. Either way, it’s a place where you can express and expose yourself in any way you choose to show it.
In the documentary “Growing Up Online,” a PBS Frontline broadcast directed by Rachel Dertzin and John Maggio, tells the story of many American teens on how their lives are growing up in front of a screen and how adults are dealing with this generation gap between them. Erin Skinner, a mother or four, said, “I remembering being 11; I remember being 13; I remember being 16, and I remember having secrets. But it’s really hard being on the other side” (PBS). It was mentioned that the internet is the biggest generation gap since rock and roll. The net is the most reliable source for communication. 90% of teens are online and the number is still growing (PBS). If you aren’t online, you’re out of the loop. Greg, a teenager that is a internet users, states, “You need to use the internet to talk to your friends because everyone uses it. It’s like a currency. If you don’t use it, you’re gonna be at the loss” (PBS).
With that generation gap, it’s harder for adults to understand and communicate with their children. Not only the adults at home, but as school as well. Teenagers are use to sitting in front of a screen so it isn’t a surprise to see a projector in classes around America. They won’t be able to focus with a teacher talking in a plain voice, writing facts on a chalk board (PBS).
Although the internet is a way to keep in touch with friends and family, there are other things out there that can be hurting teens. Parents are concerned predators, stalkers and cyber bullies. Parents are fearful for their children, but many of them would say they aren’t stupid and know what to avoid. A nine-graded said, “My parents don’t understand that I’ve spent pretty much since second grade online. I know what to avoid” (PBS). But online predators aren’t they only concern. There are sites out there that encourage bad behavior like eating disorders, inappropriate sites with adult contents and even sites for unhappy kids, telling them the best way to kill themselves.
The internet might have brought some good times to this day in age, but it also brought some bad. It’s hard enough for adults to understand the mind of a teenager, even though they went through that stage themselves; it’s even harder when teens now are isolated in their bedrooms, in front of a computer or TV screen and they don’t even know what their kid is doing at all.

Part Two:
If I were to write a story on how the internet and digital media have affected my life, I would focus on probably the music area. Although music have been around forever, for me, it’s like an addiction to know the latest hit, who’s debut album went to #1 in the first week, what did this artist mean when they wrote these lyrics, what’s the newest technology being used in the recording studio. I just have to know.
I mainly use the internet as my source to find the information I want. When I was younger, I remember just listening to the radio, buying Cds and watching music videos TV. Now, I’m on sites for artists, records labels and technical equipment for recording music. I’m always downloading (legally) the last track from an up and coming artist. It’s an addiction to know and learn more. I also spend a lot of my time at record stores, talking to owners and go see under ground bands, sneaking backstage to hopefully talk to them about their music.
Of course, all the time I spend researching and looking, I’m usually stuck upstairs in my bedroom rather than being downstairs with my parents. They understand the passion I have for music, they don’t understand the reasoning for it. Like how people have said Myspace and Facebook is addicting, finding the newest track from James Morrison, Adelitas Way and Flo Rida is mine.