Risky behavior in teens on display for all in MySpace age

The Journal Sentinel writes: Anthony De La Rosa’s public MySpace profile might cause employers or college admissions officers to flinch: The 18-year-old listed “weed” among his interests and posted a photo of himself labeled “joint,” in which he looks almost ready to smoke one. Still, the Milwaukee resident doesn’t regret broadcasting his behavior online. De La Rosa said, “I do not care what anybody thinks about me.”

Or who sees his page.

But a new study co-led by a University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher suggests not all MySpace users realize how public their so-called private lives are – and many made changes when warned about it.

In an initial study, UW School of Medicine and Public Health assistant professor of pediatrics Megan Moreno and a team of researchers found more than half of 18-year-old MySpace users they studied mentioned sex, violence or substance use on their Web profiles.  Continue Reading.

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