By Anna Raboin
Staff Writer

With the release of the film Social Network, it is a perfect time to reflect on the Facebook phenomenon. Years ago, sitting in his dorm room at Harvard University, Mark Zuckerburg probably had no idea how far his idea would travel.

There is no doubt that Facebook has become a major part of virtually everyone’s daily routine. The network has over 500 million members. If Facebook were a country, it would have the 3rd largest population in the world. Anyone at Westford Academy with a Facebook account is a part of this massive global network.

A few years ago, the power of being connected was not abused and privacy was not our concern. The world’s addiction to social networking has become a life-altering factor in the lives of teens.

Through Facebook, people have been reconnected with long-lost parents, siblings and friends. People can instantly spread word and gain support for an issue that needs to be solved.

Yes, Facebook has done all these things and more. But it has also enabled the cruel harassment of peers.

We’ve all heard about the death of Phoebe Prince, the 15 year-old South Hadley freshmen who hanged herself after relentless bullying from girls at her school in person and through social networks. Rutgers student Tyler Clementi jumped off the George Washington Bridge after live video of him having sex with another boy was streamed on to the Internet.

Formspring, MySpace, Twitter: they all play a role. However, Facebook is emphasized because of its popularity here in Westford and how influential it has become.

Administrator Adam Goldberg does acknowledge that Facebook can be a positive and powerful thing, but he has seen the ugly side of social networking.

“…I have seen some horrific examples of cruelty and intimidation and demeaning and condescending types of things written about people on Facebook. Students have come in and they’ve handed me print-out transcripts. It’s very disturbing, some of the things I’ve seen written about people,” says Goldberg.

The fact that kids are always connected and never face-to-face makes harassing easier. Teens that are experiencing cyber-bullying often feel even more hopeless than those that are bullied at school. Attackers over the Internet are anonymous, relentless, and can always find ways to access your account.

Those who use social networks need to question whether the social network itself is out of control, or whether it is just the people on them. Students here at Westford Academy and all around the world need to reflect on the Facebook craze.

Without a doubt, Facebook can be a positive thing. However, students cannot ignore the individuals who have had fatal experiences with social networking.