Miss America Weaves Web Advice: Lauren Nelson Has Been Emphasizing Online Safety During Her Reign
By Jill Nolin, Northwest Florida Daily News, Fort Walton Beach
Oct. 26–NICEVILLE — Look both ways before crossing the street. Stop, drop and roll. Stranger danger.
Those are all familiar nuggets of wisdom that adults pass on to children.
But 2007 Miss America Lauren Nelson wants parents to add a new routine to the lineup: Talk to children about what they’re doing online.
“The best thing is just ask questions and talk about it, but make it a conversation, not an interrogation,” the 20-year-old said Thursday morning before speaking to 600 students at Ruckel Middle School.
The visit to Niceville was one of a few stops on Nelson’s tour along the Emerald Coast. She also visited the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Emerald Coast and the Emerald Grande in Destin for a charity event.
She urges parents to start talking to children when they’re as young as 3 years old. “It can’t start early enough,” she said. She encourages parents to check what their children are doing online. Look at the sites. Sit beside them as they surf the Web. Some parents are ahead of her. “How many of your parents do that?” Nelson asked the students, who came from nine middle schools in Okaloosa County. A few dozen of them raised their hands. “How many of you find it really annoying?” she said. The hands stayed in the air. Nelson encouraged students to meet their parents halfway and do things like show them their MySpace or Facebook pages.
Nelson is using her position to raise awareness about Internet safety. It’s an issue she chose because of her own experience.
She was 13-years-old when a seemingly harmless “instant message” session with an older man led to him sending her inappropriate pictures of himself.
That was seven years ago, and that threat is increasing as more teens turn to the Internet for social networking. About 69 percent of teens regularly receive personal messages online from people they don’t know, according to a survey conducted this year by Cox Communications.
Most of those teens do not tell an adult about the messages, according to the survey.
“The best thing you can do is to only talk to people you know in the real world,” said Nelson, who is a spokeswoman for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and Cox Communications.
“It’s the same thing on the street as it is on the Internet,” Nelson said.
Nelson’s advice wasn’t limited to online predators. She also discussed cyber bullying, identity theft and how a personal Web site like a MySpace page can harm a person’s reputation.
She shared tips with the students on how to stay safe online:
–Don’t talk to strangers.
–Don’t give out personal information online.
–If someone suspicious contacts you, tell an adult. She also had tips for parents: –Keep the line of communication open and comfortable. –Keep the computer in a high-traffic area. –Download software, which is available online at
www.cox.com/takecharge.
Some students just enjoyed the experience of meeting the beauty queen. “She gorgeous,” said Marisa Hancock. “Her hair is pretty awesome,” said Haley Leibach. “I really want her hair,” added Hancock.
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Copyright (c) 2007, Northwest Florida Daily News, Fort Walton Beach
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