Our socially networked world

Published Dec 10 2008, 01:56 PM by Ian Donnis

I hope to have a more thoughtful post today or later this week on Twitter.

In the interim . . .

Breakkup.com, a newish Web site, allows you, the American public (or at least those with too much time on their hands), to cast votes on whether the love-lorn should stay together or split.

Meanwhile, sending one's nude picture via cell phone is becoming all the rage among teens and twenty-somethings, the Boston Globe reports:

A report being released today shows that these were not isolated incidents but part of a national trend. One-fifth of teenagers surveyed have sent or posted nude or seminude pictures or videos of themselves, usually to a boyfriend or girlfriend, and almost a third have received such images, according to "Sex and Tech," a new study by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unwanted Pregnancy and CosmoGirl.com.

Among young adults (ages 20-26), the numbers are higher: One-third said they have posted or sent racy images of themselves, and almost half have received them. TRU, a company that specializes in youth research, conducted the survey online with 1,280 teenagers and young adults selected from its database of research participants.

A spokesman for the National Campaign, a nonprofit group that advocates for sex education and access to contraceptives, said he is concerned about the link between what happens online and what happens in real life.

Filed Under: Technology