Сyberbullying is a serious problem that has only grown in recent years, as the internet and social media have become more prevalent in our society. A cyberbully is someone who uses the internet or other electronic communications to deliberately harass, threaten, or humiliate someone else. Cyberbullying can take many forms, such as sending threatening or abusive emails or text messages, posting hurtful or mean comments on social media, or spreading rumors online.
While there is no federal law specifically addressing cyberbullying, many states have passed their own laws to try to combat this problem. Some of these laws make it a crime to engage in cyberbullying, while others simply require schools to put policies in place to address the issue.
There are pros and cons to having laws that specifically target cyberbullying. On the one hand, these laws can provide a deterrent to would-be bullies and give victims a way to seek justice. On the other hand, some say that these laws are too vague or that they could be used to censor free speech. Cyberbullying is a complex issue, and there is no easy solution. But as more and more young people are affected by it, it is important to continue to explore ways to address this problem.
In June 2012, Lori Drew was sentenced to prison for a term of three years and ten months by federal district court judge Michael Hogan in the United States. The conviction resulted from the suicide of thirteen-year-old Megan Meier. Megan was a MySpace user.
Josh Evans befriended her. When Josh became severe in their online conversations, Megan took everything he said to heart because she regarded him so highly. As a result, she was informed that the world would be a better place if she were gone. This pushed her over the edge and caused her to hang herself. Soon after, the Meirs discovered that Josh Evans was a fraudulent account.
The account was created by Drew’s daughter along with her mother’s help. Cyberbullying was not a crime at the time so they could not be charged with anything. If this happened today, they would be facing up to 20 years in prison.
The Cyberbullying Prevention Act was put into place in 2011. It made it a federal crime to transmit “any communication using electronic means” with the intent to “coerce, intimidate, harass, or cause substantial emotional distress to another person” on the basis of race, religion, gender, or nationality. While this act does have good intentions, it also has its fair share of downfalls.
One of the main problems with this act is that it’s very vague. The term “substantial emotional distress” is not defined, so it can be interpreted in many different ways. This leaves a lot of room for abuse on the part of law enforcement. Cyberbullying is already hard enough to prove, and this vagueness makes it even more difficult.
Another downside to this act is that it could potentially stifle free speech. If someone says something that could be interpreted as threatening or harassing, they could be prosecuted even if their intentions were not malicious. This could have a chilling effect on online discourse, as people self-censor out of fear of being accused of breaking the law.
Cyberbullying laws are well-intentioned but they have a lot of potential drawbacks. Cyberbullying is already hard to prove, and these laws make it even more difficult. They also have the potential to stifle free speech. Cyberbullying is a serious problem, but these laws are not the best way to deal with it. Cyberbullying needs to be addressed, but we need to be careful about how we do it. Cyberbullying laws are not the answer.
A mysterious neighbor who is the creator of the fake account for Megan’s daughter created it. It was made by a neighbor who used to be acquainted with Megan’s daughter. There were few cyberbullying laws at the time because this occurred in 2006. Lorie Drew, the mother who established the phony Facebook account, was only convicted of three counts of misdemeanor violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.
Today, there has been significant progress in terms of anti-bullying legislation. Antibullying laws have now been passed in 49 out of 50 states (Hewitt). Despite their apparent usefulness, these regulations still need to include more deterrents and prevention measures.
Cyberbullying has become a reoccurring problem in today’s society. With the invention of social media, cyberbullying has become more rampant and easier to do. Cyberbullying is defined as “willfully and repeatedly harassing or threatening another person online” (Wolak).
Cyberbullying can be done in many forms such as, posting mean comments, spreading rumors, making fake accounts, and sending threatening messages. Cyberbullying can have lasting effects on the victim. Some of these effects include: low self esteem, anxiety, depression, and even suicidal thoughts (Wolak). Because of these lasting effects, there needs to be more done in order to prevent cyberbullying.
According to an internet news story, “A 2011 study by the US Department of Education revealed that a few states are not following best practices in bullying prevention. Ineffective bullying laws lack a clear and comprehensive definition of which behaviors and situations constitute bullying.” To begin to address this problem, there must first be a legal definition of the level of involvement schools have with it.
Cyberbullying has become a very big problem in today’s society. With the rise of social media, it has become easier for people to bully others without any consequences. Unfortunately, many states do not have laws that protect victims of cyberbullying. This leaves them vulnerable to further abuse.
There are pros and cons to having laws that specifically address cyberbullying. On the one hand, it can help to protect victims and hold perpetrators accountable for their actions. On the other hand, some argue that these laws could infringe on free speech rights. Cyberbullying laws also tend to be difficult to enforce.
The bottom line is that more needs to be done to address the issue of cyberbullying. Whether or not this includes specific laws is up for debate. But, what is clear is that something needs to be done to protect victims and hold bullies accountable for their actions. Cyberbullying is a serious problem that can have lasting effects on its victims. It is important that we take steps to address it in order to create a safer online environment for everyone.
