Parents Can Help Teens Find Safe Crime Forums
Teens Fascinated With Criminals Need Help Finding Forums
Dec 14, 2008
Online websites and forums are popular among amateur detectives and true crime buffs, but parents should be aware of what sites their teenagers are using to research and discuss crimes. As crimes such as the murder of Caylee Anthony hit the news in unrelenting waves, teens join the numbers of people interested in learning more about true crime.
A Literary Approach to Crime and Mystery
Before braving the web, teens may want to look at mystery and crime books, because editors will make sure that even if the books are gruesome, they are true. Also, Amazon.com customer reviews and other sources of book reviews can alert parents to books that are too unsettling. Teenagers who are fans of James Ellroy, John Grisham, Truman Capote, Dominick Dunne and other writers may find themselves wondering about the crimes described in their writings, and want to learn more about them.
Best Site for Researching Historical Crimes
In terms of "teen-friendliness", Trutv.com (formerly Courttv.com) has an impressive collection of crime stories. The layout of the section "Trutv.com Crime Library" is clean, the content, while clearly inappropriate for children, is appropriate for teenagers. This site would be a good choice for teenagers with a general interest in crimes that received a lot of attention.
Best Site for Researching Current Crimes
There are many crime-related discussion boards, such as Crimenews2000 and ScaredMonkeys.com, and forums on specific channels (such as Fox and CNN), one site that seems to have particularly strong moderation is Websleuths. While the site is not specifically directed at teenagers, it seems "teen safe" and the opening message on the site encourages participation, noting that "Everyone has something to offer."
If teenagers register for a forum, parents should register as well, simply because forums often have sections that are available only to members. Options should be set so that personal message and personal email can not be received.
Parents should also remind teenagers that whenever people post to forums, they need to remember the following online safety rules:
- Never give out personal information (including name, address, email, phone, location, age).
- Use appropriate language and wording, because posts can last longer than opinions
- Do not give out the personal information of other people.
Best Site for Researching Legal Crimes
While some teens are interested in the "unsolved mysteries" of historical and current crimes, some teenagers are interested in the process of criminal prosecution. Parents should direct these teens to state legal sites. These sites are not flashy or especially easy to navigate, but may offer enormous information and resources. Court cases can be found by case number or by keywords. Parents and teachers should help teenagers differentiate between fact-based articles and opinion-based editorials.
Although teenagers hear a lot of warnings about myspace.com, facebook.com, and other internet social networking sites, not all teens realize that the same rules apply to internet forums. Particularly in the fascinating area of criminology, even older teens need guidance finding site that are respectful of victims, avoid shock value photos, and provide clear distinctions for facts versus conjecture.
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