Social media re Manchester indoctrinating dcs

[LadyinCement]

Never mind Katy Hopkins, who reaches a few thousand Daily Mail readers.

My teen dcs are being bombarded on social media with views that "we're all responsible", it's a Tory plot, it's only 22 compared with how many die in the world who no one cares about etc etc. Dd showed me Buzzfeed and it's constant.

Now, children are pretty susceptible and I feel that - just in the same way as terrorists are indoctrinated - some children will be accepting of not just the drivel, but the constant drip, drip of a certain agenda.

Young people do not get their news from the Daily Mail. They look at their phones. And this is what they're being fed.

Links please?

I can't do a link to dd's phone - anyway, she's at school.

Umm yeah I've seen nothing of the sort, do you have links?

Stop letting your DD have so much access to social media.

I haven't seen anything like that on Buzzfeed. Where's your DD getting it?

I don't think we want a link to your DD's phone - rather a link to the kind of 'indoctrination' you're concerned about.
And yes to what Jamie said.

Seen Buzzfeed. Not seen this sort of thing. In Manchester. No idea what you are talking about. Enlighten me.

Nope I have teen dds and they haven't seen anything like this and would know it sss crap anyway.

Surely your dd and her friends would too.

There are a few articles about the attacks on buzz feed uk but on the main buzz feed page there's nothing. I suggest they unlike the U.K. one if it's bothering them or you so much

I don't think teens are as stupid as you think. I know the kids at DD2's school discuss these matters in their tutor groups before school and reason normally prevails.

I had a look on You Tube yesterday and the 'conspiracy' videos would only have difficulty convincing even the terminally thick.

If your children are absorbing the stuff you mentioned without critical thinking, this is an opportunity for you to challenge them.
If some dickhead is saying this a put up job by TM or whatever, surely that is easily challenged. If they won't listen to you, ask the school to address it.

some people shouldnt have access to the internet

If they have read articles which point them to suffering in war in other countries, you can talk to them about that too.

The reason dd mentioned it was that she was upset at the vitriol directed at anyone save the bomber.

My niece lives in Ireland, but has a lot of British "internet" friends on Twitter. My SIL has had to change her Twitter password because her timeline was so full of her opinionated British teenage "friends" on a "the Tories did this" rant. She didn't mention buzzfeed, but it sounds like that could be where those kids are getting it from. I'd restrict her access personally.

Can you give examples OP?

Lesson on how social media feeds you more of the same?

Get your teens to clear their cookies on one of the phones, and compare how this changes the material suggested for them on YouTube and elsewhere.

This is what's meant by the "echo chamber".

I've been teaching my 13 year old DD how to tell a real fact from some shite someone's made up.

So all those memes with a supposed quote from Marylin Monroe...I used one of those and then introduced her to Snopes.

That's a good start.

No. I don't have a mobile phone. I take the dc's word for it. And they're not (particularly) stupid. Like Gaelic, ds has said can't stand the offensive Twitter posts.

One is inclined to think they might be orchestrated somehow as it seems impossible that there are so many people with inappropriately-timed views.

I have heard similar comments, it's a Tory plot, what about all the others killed etc etc

Some of the stories are just bonkers (such as the Tory plot), others can have a point (we never make such a huge thing about similar terrorist attacks that are killing many many more people but aren't in Europe - similar comments were made after the attacks in France).

The only way you can 'protect' your dcs is by teaching them to be very critical about what they read, talk about ppolitics at home and ensure that they know what is actually going in as well as spotting fake news and crisscrossing information from different sources.

The issue here of course is that more or less no one is actually dong that as an adult.....

Surely this is what evening meal times are for, for the whole family to sit together and discuss events and anything else that is on their mind (child or adult). At these times as a parent you should be pointing out to them that majority of the news they read on social media is fake news and that if they want to know more about something they should research it themselves, and then use one of the meal nights to discuss it. This will make them more aware of the news and what is real and what is fake and will also stop them being so reliant upon social media for everything.

Orchestrated by who?

Twitter shows you stuff from people you choose to follow. That doesn't make it acceptable to post awful things on there, but if your DC are seeing awful things left, right and centre, that's maybe a good opportunity for a chat to them about who they're choosing to follow and why.

DCs don't believe this stuff, and seem to think it's quote "morons" passing it around and believing it.

Young people aren't as stupid as people think, if you think they're being misled (priority 1) give them a little guidance in how to read things and (priority 2 because they will see content anyway) exercise a little authority in what they're exposed to.

This is not about the dcs believing what they read. Of course they don't believe everything! And we were discussing it.

I am just voicing concern that social media is the equivalent of reading the Daily Mail - there's an agenda and groupthink which is being pushed onto unformed minds.

Some of the kids my niece follows are downright vile according to my brother. The Tories is their thing right now. Lots of "if your parents voted Tory my mum lost her benefits I hope you die" type stuff. It's grim.