Sex, Drugs ’n Facebook: A Parent’s Toolkit for Promoting Healthy Internet Use

Moreno, an adolescent-medicine pediatrician, social media researcher, and mother, has spent the past five years investigating ever-changing landscape of technology use by tweens, teens, and young adults. She organized the Social Media and Adolescent Health Research Team (SMAHRT), a think tank of professionals, graduate students, parents, and adolescents, to look into and share observations about Internet use and abuse. The resulting book is a valuable and realistic resource on Internet safety that offers a model developed with support from the American Academy of Pediatrics. Parental worries include unwanted sexual solicitation and sexting; exposure to inappropriate information; cyberbullying, and Internet addiction. With its three-pronged approach—Boundaries, Balance, and Communication—this toolkit can be used by parents with children of different ages, from middle school through college. Each two-page spread features the voices of the contributors weighing in with opinions, stories, advice, and warnings, and black-and-white photos displaying actual Web sites and devices. As Moreno writes, “Although it can be overwhelming at times, the Internet is an invaluable resource for doing well in school, staying in touch with friends and family, and staying current in the world.” Moreno’s book shows parents how to keep this resource safe. (Sept.)