However, the ways in which parents supervise their children can vary a great deal. There is a huge difference between blocking pornography sites on the family computer, and installing spyware recording your child’s every keystroke. While it is great that more parents are getting involved with what their children are doing online, it’s also important to remember that the methods parents use to supervise are critical. Kids need to know they can talk to their parents, even when they make mistakes. Parents need to understand how and why their children use new media, and both sides of the equation need to agree on sets of boundaries for things like privacy and screen time.

That is why our LAMPlit library includes free resource guides about how to be responsible about using the Internet and new media. Our newest LAMPlit,  Guide to Healthy Digital Relationships, is down-to-earth interactive resource for teens about how to be responsible online, and tips for how to talk to their parents about their online lives. Our very first LAMPlit, The Beginner’s Guide to Going Online is primarily geared toward parents who want to learn more about the media their kids use, and how to steward their family through a sea of technology and information. Whether you’re a parent taking the first steps in supervising what your kids do online, or you’re a veteran Facebooker, you need to make proactive decisions about how you interact with media. All LAMPlit guides are free, and we love to get feedback on how they can be improved or what else you’d like us to cover.  Check it out, and let us know what you think!

While you’re at it, take a look at our other LAMPlit resource guides on news literacy and the basics of having a positive experience online.

Many thanks to Cristina Stoll for the design and layout of this LAMPlit.

So, what is news literacy? It’s the ability to think critically about the news, and the way you find out about what is reported in the world around you. It helps you form your own opinions, and become a more active media consumer. Instead of believing whatever a news outlet tells you, you’ll be thinking for yourself about how, why and where you get the news that shapes your life and your everyday decisions. Download Check out the news! for free today, and you’ll never see news in quite the same way again.

For Immediate Release

Contact: Emily Long, Communications Director

The LAMP

718-789-8170

http://www.thelampnyc.org

The LAMP Announces LAMPlit Series

Resource guides offer real-world ideas for cyber-world issues

Brooklyn, New York: The LAMP (Learning About Multimedia Project) launched the first volume in its LAMPlit series of multimedia resource guides, entitled “LAMPlit: A Beginner’s Guide to Going Online.” All of the guides in the LAMPlit series will be available for free download from the LAMP’s website at www.thelampnyc.org/lamplit. The guides are written and disseminated by the LAMP without corporate sponsorship.

The first guide focuses on helping adults and young people have a safe and positive experience online, and is released in coincidence with National Cyber Safety Awareness Month. During Symantec’s Norton Online Living Report in 2007, 1 in 5 children reported doing things online that their parents would disapprove of, while only 50% of parents have spoken to their kids about practicing safe online habits. One reason parents may be hesitant to get involved is because parents tend to hear more about the bad things that can happen online, says LAMP Executive Director D.C. Vito.

“The stories about online predators and cyberbullying tend to be the ones that get the most coverage,” says Mr. Vito. “It creates a culture of fear around the Internet and new media, and we’ve seen a lot of emphasis on the negative. We wanted to create a guide that is balanced and fair, that does not deny any of the bad things that potentially can happen online, but that also hits on the ways that the Internet is really a great thing. People just have to know what they’re doing.”

In addition to addressing privacy concerns, LAMPlit also aims to support parents who might avoid getting involved in their children’s online activities because new media can be overwhelming.

“It can be difficult for parents to start a conversation with their kids about what they’re doing online, but it’s absolutely imperative,” says Katherine Fry, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Media Studies at Brooklyn College and Education Director for the LAMP. “Too often, adults are intimidated by new technology, so they just ignore it. They miss using media as a chance to bring their family closer together instead of farther apart.”

All of the guides in the LAMPlit series will be available for free download from the LAMP’s website at www.thelampnyc.org/lamplit.Future LAMPlit guides will target gaming, social networking, Internet ethics, news, advertising and more.

About The LAMP:

The Learning About Multimedia Project (The LAMP) is a non-profit organization which strives to provide critical media literacy skills to the inter-related groups of youths, their parents and educators throughout New York City. Free media education workshops and events offered by the LAMP demystify the constant flow of media these three groups encounter, bridge the digital divide, and provide workforce development skills for future generations.

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