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[VANITY] (From Microsoft) Helping kids deal with hateful content on the Internet
Microsoft.com ^

Posted on 10/11/2005 8:33:10 PM PDT by goonie4life9

Helping kids deal with hateful content on the Internet Published: December 14, 2004 Boy standing by a door with a computer in the background

There are many forms of hate on the Internet, ranging from extreme racist sites to the cruel satire found on many popular kids' Web sites. Sites such as "uglypeople.com" may seem harmless, but they contribute to a kids' online culture where cruelty to others is considered acceptable.

It is not difficult to understand how some impressionable kids move from sites where people are mocked for their personal appearance to sites where minorities and homosexuals are attacked.

White supremacist and hate groups are increasingly turning to the Internet to target young people for recruitment. Hate promoters look for vulnerable youth who can be brought into their community through private chat rooms and e-mail, far away from the public eye.

These groups also use hateful music to entice young people to their cause. When kids surf the Net for music, they can easily come across sites that sell hate music or even make it available for free.

Some hate sites have areas specifically designed for young children that give the appearance of being legitimate by offering harmless activities, crafts, and links to respected kids' sites.

The purpose of a hate site isn't always readily apparent. For example, at first glance, "martinlutherking.org" appears to be a tribute to the American civil rights leader. In fact, it is a hate site created by a white supremacist organization. How to help your kids avoid hateful content on the Internet

Parents must protect young children from hateful content on the Internet. They must also teach older kids how to think critically about online content and what to look for when identifying if a Web site might be a hate Web site. Here are some things you can do to help your kids avoid hateful content online: Tip

Tip: For more specific information about how to protect your kids online at certain stages, see A parent's guide to online safety: Ages and stages. •

Learn everything you can about the Internet and what your kids are doing online. Ask your kids to show you where they go online and what they like. Keep the lines of communication open so your kids feel comfortable coming to you for help if they encounter anything disturbing. •

Create an online agreement with input from your kids. The agreement should have clear guidelines for where they can go on the Internet and what they can do. •

Monitor and supervise your children's Internet use. Generally, children under 10 do not have the critical-thinking skills to surf the Net alone. It's a good practice to keep connected computers in a highly visible area, not in your child's room. •

Educate your kids about online hate. Young people will better be able to recognize and avoid hateful content if they are taught the strategies hate promoters use and the history of racism. Help them to identify hateful content and symbols on Web sites—for example, swastikas, derogatory references to race or sexual orientation, and cartoon depictions of various ethnic and racial groups. •

Investigate filtering software. While filters can help block some violent and hateful content, these technologies are not the complete answer. Online hate often crops up in subtle forms that are not always identified by filters. •

Practice good online etiquette. Encourage your children to be kind and respectful in what they write online and not to encourage hateful, mean, or harassing messages to others. Remind them that nothing online is totally private.


TOPICS: Computers/Internet
KEYWORDS: hate; nazi; racist; troll; whitesupremecist
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(This article was published in 2004, but was linked in the Microsoft Security Newsletter I received today.)I think it is interesting that Microsoft is now in the business of deciding what is and is not hate. Specifically, Microsoft makes a huge stretch in trying to link visiting uglypeople.com to then visiting racist or anti-gay sites. Further, from my casual perusal of www. martinlutherking.org, I found no hateful content, just merely an alternative account of MLK's life. But I guess if you question certain people's legacy, you are a racist.
1 posted on 10/11/2005 8:33:13 PM PDT by goonie4life9
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To: goonie4life9

FR didn't make the list????


2 posted on 10/11/2005 8:35:51 PM PDT by null and void (Bringing Faith to the Doubtful, and Doubt to the Faithful)
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To: null and void

No, but I'm sure if they were pressed, they would name FR.


3 posted on 10/11/2005 8:38:16 PM PDT by goonie4life9
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To: goonie4life9

Well, here we go again with this "Corporate Social Responsibility" crap. Can't they stick to writing and distributing software?


4 posted on 10/11/2005 8:38:40 PM PDT by AZ_Cowboy ("Be ever vigilant, for you know not when the master is coming")
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To: null and void

I played around with Internet Nanny (or some such similar name) in the early days, to keep my kids away from pornography sites. I dropped it because it slowed things down like molasses. It was painful to load a page.

As I recall, FreeRepublic, or it might have been Whitewater in those days, was on the list of forbidden sites in some of these programs.


5 posted on 10/11/2005 8:38:40 PM PDT by Cicero (Marcus Tullius)
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To: null and void

Maybe this'll do it!

6 posted on 10/11/2005 8:39:36 PM PDT by BenLurkin (O beautiful for patriot dream - that sees beyond the years)
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To: BenLurkin

It's lovely, is it not. All these libs wail about tolerence and diversity. But of course only they, the enlightened ones, can judge what is truly tolerant and diverse and what is hate.


7 posted on 10/11/2005 8:42:49 PM PDT by goonie4life9
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To: goonie4life9

martinlutherking.org is hosted by "stormfront" which definitely has a vicious racist agenda. NOT a reliable source, in my opinion.


8 posted on 10/11/2005 8:44:30 PM PDT by BenLurkin (O beautiful for patriot dream - that sees beyond the years)
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To: goonie4life9

Poltical correctness == The Liberal Agenda == Despotism

There is no dissent. The damned intellectuals have already decided on the issues. What are you still debating for?

Your media will be blacklisted, you will be determined unfit for the courts, and your politics have "no place" in the classroom. Hate speech is prohibited (and defined by the left).

But there is a way to save your kids from this future. Abortion is a birthright in America.


9 posted on 10/11/2005 8:53:32 PM PDT by weegee (The lesson from New Orleans? Smart Growth kills. You can't evacuate dense populations easily.)
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To: BenLurkin

My point was that the site presented no material that was hateful. I was attempting to point out that Microsoft was not really trying to stop the spread of hatred, but was rather trying to tell parents to be sure their children only read lib approved material. To normal, rational people, a fact is a fact, but to libs, a fact is only a fact if it does not hurt anyone's feeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelings.


10 posted on 10/11/2005 8:53:44 PM PDT by goonie4life9
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To: goonie4life9

"It's lovely, is it not. All these libs wail about tolerence and diversity. But of course only they, the enlightened ones, can judge what is truly tolerant and diverse and what is hate. "

I agree


11 posted on 10/11/2005 8:59:56 PM PDT by seastay
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To: goonie4life9

I have not been to that website or investigated those who put it together.

Martin Luther King Jr. did good things but towards the end of his life his message was getting co-opted into a discussion of class discrimination (socialist theory).


12 posted on 10/11/2005 9:00:22 PM PDT by weegee (The lesson from New Orleans? Smart Growth kills. You can't evacuate dense populations easily.)
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To: weegee

Speaking of "no place" in the classroom, I have this professor who routinely likes to answer my objections with, "yeah, it really all does depend on your worldview," and then change the subject. We couldn't have any facts getting in the way of political ideology and indoctrination, now could we (which is why, imo, people are being driven away from psychology and psychologists- too many let their politics blind them, and scientific inquiry into human behavior has been replaced with politically correct studies: feeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeel good studies, blame-the-white-man studies, normalize deviant behavior studies, etc.).


13 posted on 10/11/2005 9:01:54 PM PDT by goonie4life9
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To: goonie4life9
Hate promoters look for vulnerable youth who can be brought into their community through private chat rooms and e-mail, far away from the public eye.

Sounds like the journey of the American Taliban from white (pretending online to be black) hip hop fan into rabid Islamonazi taking up arms for "the cause" overseas.

Are Islamist sites (including Ask The Imam) on Microsquish's list?

14 posted on 10/11/2005 9:03:37 PM PDT by weegee (The lesson from New Orleans? Smart Growth kills. You can't evacuate dense populations easily.)
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To: goonie4life9; BenLurkin
Reminds me of an old Ayn Rand novel, "We The Living" (I think) where everyone was "Equal" and no one was allowed to win (Or lose for that matter). Obviously, feelings were equalized as well to the point that there were none.
15 posted on 10/11/2005 9:04:51 PM PDT by drt1
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To: weegee

I highly doubt it. See, we have to be kind to them. We need to understand their culture. Besides, they are only angry because of our Western Imperialism (pay no attention to the conquering of Northern Africa and Spain, etc., by Muslim armies).


16 posted on 10/11/2005 9:07:02 PM PDT by goonie4life9
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To: weegee

I highly doubt it. See, we have to be kind to them. We need to understand their culture. Besides, they are only angry because of our Western Imperialism (pay no attention to the conquering of Northern Africa and Spain, etc., by Muslim armies).


17 posted on 10/11/2005 9:07:22 PM PDT by goonie4life9
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To: goonie4life9
The ultimate hate site for Microsoft to filter:


18 posted on 10/11/2005 9:09:08 PM PDT by KarlInOhio (We were promised someone in the Scalia/Thomas mold. Maybe next time.)
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To: AZ_Cowboy
Can't they stick to writing and distributing software?

Maybe they are trying to find something they can be good at?

19 posted on 10/11/2005 9:11:17 PM PDT by null and void (Bringing Faith to the Doubtful, and Doubt to the Faithful)
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To: BenLurkin

Who are those blue guys in turbans?


20 posted on 10/11/2005 9:12:08 PM PDT by null and void (Bringing Faith to the Doubtful, and Doubt to the Faithful)
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