The Economist just ran an article titled “Facebook and children: Let the nippers network” in which they maintain that “with appropriate safeguards, children should be allowed to use social networks.”

“The problem is that the under-13s can enroll on Facebook simply by lying about their age.”
-The Economist 6/9/12

The article reasons the following:

• Kids are already doing it: 5.6 million under-13s in the US alone have registered sites by lying about their age.
• Since FB does not recognize them as “kids,” there is nothing in place to protect them: kids can post pictures, show their current location, and download paid apps just like anyone else.
• Since banning children clearly doesn’t work, FB and other social networking sites should create a modified platform for kids that includes extra privacy safeguards and parental-supervision & consent requirements

It’s an interesting question:
In a digital world, how young should we issue full citizenship?
Leave a comment and let me know what you think!