Iranian Youth, Mobiles & Social Media: Despite the government crack down, Revolution 2.0 continues to move along, thanks in large part to Iranian Millennial's and their savvy use of  mobile and social networking technologies. [Mobile Youth] [Mobile Youth Marketing Trends & Clips] [Barking Robot]

Mobile Toddlers: Despite bans by other European countries, a new mobile phone being targeted to toddlers is heading to the sticky hands of wee ones in both the UK and Ireland. A new UK study found that 50% of British children aged 5 to 9 own a mobile phone.

Mobile youth culture continues to flourish in Japan, with Disney Mobile going gangbusters after flopping in the USA. Check out this Barking Robot post on kids' use of mobile phones in other countries. [Guardian] [Times Online] [Tech Crunch]

Under 30 and Kicking Ass? Derek Johnson, the founder of popular group text messaging service Tatango has created a user-powered list of entrepreneurs/CEOs under the age of 30 to help connect young entrepreneurs to one another.

If you are a young entrepreneur under the age of 30, you can add yourself to the list here. Derek has also posted a video from his recent talk on personal branding. Good stuff. Watch it! [Big Ideas From a Young Mind] [Game Change Ventures]

New Bravo Show Will Let Viewers Interact via Tweet, Email, Phone, Video & Facebook: NBC Universal-owned cable channel, Bravo, on Monday announced plans to launch an interactive TV series, entitled “Watch What Happens: Live.” It's good to see that someone gets that there in TV-land understands that there is a huge media shift taking place and that holding on to the old media model with a death grip, just isn't going to work. [Interactive TV Today]

Tweet of the Week: "I could never be a rock star guy who trashes hotel rooms. All I think is "someone's mother has to clean it up." -- @ThisIsRobThomas [Twitter]

Nielsen Debunks Myths on Teens & TV: According to Nielsen, teenagers are far from abandoning TV for so-called new media. In fact, television viewing rates among U.S. teens have actually gone up 6% in the last five years.

If you've been a long time reader of Barking Robot, this research isn't really, uhm, news. More excellent analysis on the Nielsen study from Anastasia over at Ypulse. [Tech Crunch] [Ypulse] [Barking Robot]

Bad Apples? A High School Senior loses diploma over a kiss (FAIL!), a teacher gets suspended for posting gun pictures on Facebook, 60% of students at a Chicago school won't graduate and the finger pointing has already started, a Los Angeles student is barred delivering a graduation speech because she participated in a sit-in to protest teacher layoffs, and a new study finds that many teens use mobile phones to cheat in class. [Yahoo! Buzz] [AOL Switched] [CBS Chicago] [USA Today]

Social Media 4 Good: Lipton Tea has partned with National Geographic and the Rainforest Alliance to create a micro-site that tells about sustainable agriculture in general, including the origins of Lipton teas, as well as sustainability, social and economic aspects of the tea-growing and harvesting process.

Also this week, Google launched All for Good, a new service to help you find and share volunteer opportunities, and social media companies have joined forces and declared this the Summer of Social Good.

One Last Thing: Check out this good overview of social branding, MTV talks about digital strategy and youth, help for parents trying to figure out t/weens, how to filter out Facebook "Friends" without them knowing, teen 'prodigies' debate vital issues and stuff, learning about forgiveness from Monica Lewinsky and finally, did Michael Jackson 'Fail Whale' Twitter? Yep!  [justbrand.me] [PBS] [Connect With Teens] [AlleyInsider] [Hot Air] [Flickr] [New Media Strategies]

In an attempt to crack down on cyberbullying and online harassment, Texas lawmakers have passed legislation that would "make it a felony to create phony profiles on social networking sites with the intent to "harm, defraud, intimidate, or threaten" others."

According to MediaPost, the new law "defines commercial social networking sites broadly, saying they include any sites that allow people to register to communicate with others or create Web pages or profiles. Email programs and message boards are excluded from the definition."

The legislation, which may or not be challenged in court on the basis that it limits free speech, is on the Governors desk and awaiting his signature.

Related Links

• Fake User Profiles: Free Speech or Defamation?
• Yahoo! Safely
  
• Fake Online Profiles Trigger Suit
  

One big themes of the 2009 Ypulse Youth Marketing Mashup was that teens & tweens don't use Twitter. The general thinking is that teens tend to be on Twitter as observers, not contributors (in educational psychology/instructional design speak this we call this Legitimate Peripheral Participation [LPP]).

But here's the bottom line: teens prefer updating their whereabouts or their status within the walled gardens and privacy of social networking services like Facebook.

Yes, they share too much, but contrary to popular belief, most prefer sharing information friend-to-friend and not in an environment open for public viewing. They also tend to share their updates using text messaging on their mobile phones---it's both private and not limited to 140 characters.

So this begs an interesting question: If Gen Y *really* doesn't give a Twit about Twitter, should educators be trying to integrate it into the curriculum? Is Twitter really an effective tool for learning? Or is this a case of using technology for the sake of using technology?

Seems like everyone has a theory on why teens don't Tweet. So here's a round up of the latest thinking from the blogosphere.

Why Teens Haven't Embraced Twitter...Yet: "As long as teens can update their status via MySpace and Facebook for their friends as well as IM and text, Twitter doesn't really add to the existing technology." [Ypulse.com]

Generation Y: We're Just Not That Into Twitter: "A recent survey from Pace University and the Participatory Media Network shows that only 22 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds use Twitter, while 99 percent have profiles on social networks. This may seem surprising on the face of it, but as a member of the Millennial Generation myself, I have some theories as to why it might be true." [CNET]

Three Reasons Gen Y Doesn't Get Twitter: I love Twitter, but, my 18-year old daughter still insists she doesn't "get it". [Millennial Marketing]

Millennials Among Those Who Don't Appreciate Twitter: "Millennials -- 18- to-26-year-olds -- don't see value in Twitter, although they spend hours daily texting friends and communicating on social networks in real time, according to a study released Monday from the Participatory Marketing Network (PMN)." [MediaPost]

Younger US Demos Less Likely To Tweet: "The majority of Twitter users worldwide are age 35 or older, and young adults ages 18-24 make up only 10.6% of the Twitter population in the US and are less likely than the average user to Tweet." [Marketing Charts] [ComScore]

Nielsen Reports Twitter Was Fastest Growing Community: "Nielsen also reported that the largest age group on Twitter was not college students or teens, but adults from the ages of 35-49. This group comprises nearly 42% of the site's audience at 3 million unique visitors."

Social Networking Is Hot For Gen Y, But Twitter Has Yet To Catch On: "Gen Y is like Ohio in my mind…so how Gen Y goes, so does the rest of us…eventually that is. And if that is indeed the case, then Twitter has some work to do. A recent survey of Gen Y consumers found that only 22 percent are using Twitter." [PNM Blog]

Twitter: It's a Gen X Thing: "I find what and how different generations adopt communication technology to be most fascinating. I am strongly of the belief that Twitter is a tool attractive mostly to GenXers (born 1961-1981). And here’s why..." [Jessie X]

Study Shows Gen Y Not in Love with Twitter: "Marketers who spend time on Twitter may not want to count on it as a way of reaching consumers under the age of 25." [WebProNews]

Twitter & Teens: The guru's over at MediaSnackers share their insights on teens and Twitter. Be sure to check out the comments on their blog post. Lots of great feedback from the MediaSnackers community on this issue as well. [MediaSnackers]

Teens & College Students Ignoring Twitter: "Much to the surprise of many trend watchers, Twitter has yet to catch on with teens and young adults under 25—the traditional early adopters of new media."[SubCat Marketing]

Do Teens Tweet? And Other Social Media FAQs: "Because of Ashton Kutcher's and Britney Spears' well documented use of Twitter, teens are more aware of it, but only the early adopters are using it. They may use Twitter or other micro-blogging tools in the future, but not now. They use the status updates on Facebook, which is a form of micro-blogging." [Search Engine Watch]

Teens Don't Twitter: "What’s most interesting to me about this phenomenon is the part about teens not twittering.  All the studies show that’s true but don’t seem to look for causality. They miss the simple point that twittering is public behavior (one-way at that!) and texting is private and bi-directional.

An adult or a teen celebrity might twitter but most regular kids see what they are communicating as too private to share with anyone other than the person for whom it is intended, much less any old creep who chooses to subscribe." [I, Cringely]

Why Gen Y's Not Into Twitter?: "Twitter is like a real-time, ongoing, multi-person conversation - more like back chat in an online presentation, where people just put tweets "out there" without necessarily expecting anything to come back. It's a little like comparing apples and oranges, because a Facebook profile functions so differently - it's as much a representation of a person's social network as a person, which seems to be the greatest appeal for youth." [NetFamilyNews]

The Online Watering Hole: "I'm surprised that in spite of all the hype a lot of Millennials in advertising are still holding out on Twitter. A lot of us have dabbled with it, but quickly lost interest and let the account run cold. It takes time to develop a fruitful network on Twitter, and Millennials are already married to other platforms: We use Facebook to keep in touch with our friends, and LinkedIn to store professional contacts." [Advertising Age: Gen > Next]

When Teens Come to Twitter: "If teens choose to start using Twitter, they will use it in a very similar way to how older generations use Twitter. The content they share will be different, and their conversations will definitely be different, but the concept will be the same. There are a lot of reasons that teens would want to use twitter, but there are also some barriers that need to be addressed first." [Lost Jacket]

Teens Don't Use Twitter; so Who Does?: "...Teens are as likely as anybody else to be resistant to new popular products — if they see Twitter as just another platform that wastes their time, then they won’t use it. I use Twitter a lot and actually much more than I use Facebook. It’s easy, streamlined, and single-purpose. Maybe I’m more open to innovation than teens are…?" [Sky's Blog]

Youth on Twitter: "At the risk of opening a can of worms, I’ll share my thoughts. I don’t care. I don’t care at all if people under 18 are using Twitter, or that they might see me talk about a difficult topic like IVF vs adoption or argue politics or religion or tell an adult joke here or there, or link to a site a parent might not approve of." [Uptown Uncorked]

Five Reasons Teens Don't Like to Twitter: "Twitter experts and social marketing experts are still hoping that, as Twitter is relatively new, its blastoff to the teenage market is just taking a while. But in my opinion, Twitter will never be a teen online hangout -here’s why..." [Made To Market]

Twitter Doesn't Smell Like Teen Spirit: "Twitter has lately became more Mainstream than ever with the help of popular media shows like The Today Show and even the Presidential Specials, chances are if you have turned on your T.V lately or browsed internet articles you have ran across the term “Twitter”.  Seems like everyone is jumping on this bandwagon….except for the young adults." [Social Media Vision]

Twitter Not Teeming With Teens: "I admit, I was surprised to find that Facebook isn't the only social media that is attracting mums, dad, grandparents and, quite possibly, great-grandparents - it seems Twitter's maturing quickly, too. [BizReport]

Related Links

• Why Twitter Matters
• I Want My Twitter TV
• UK Students May Be Required to Master Twitter
• Teen Girl Dies Tweeting in the Tub

This summer Dizzywood, the popular kids site that incorporates a pro-social message into a virtual world environment, is hosting a Virtual Summer Camp.

Participants at Dizzywood’s virtual summer camp can earn badges in several areas, such as gardening and exploring, which are designed to build confidence and provide a connection for children to participate in real-world activities in their communities.

Achievement badges are also awarded to players for specific accomplishments in-game, such as helping to rebuild the road to Canal City, or voting in the annual election for Chief Poobah. When kids earn a badge, it is displayed in the game on their player profile card for friends to see.

Here's a round-up of some of the summer activities taking place in Dizzywood:

• Players can now earn achievement badges for cultivating in-game skills, such as exploring and gardening, and for specific accomplishments such as voting in the annual election for Chief Poobah. The badges are displayed on player profile cards and designed to build confidence in young children.


• Dizzywood is fostering teamwork and collaboration in a fun meta-game of Color War, as part of its virtual summer camp for kids. Players can often be found at their team clubhouses self-organizing rallies to boost their team points and proudly displaying their team colors.

• Kids can now earn a membership to Dizzywood through the SmartyCard program. SmartyCard allows kids to earn stuff they want by completing educational and grade-appropriate activities. Rewards include subscriptions to their favorite virtual worlds, including Dizzywood.

Looks like there are lots of fun activities and games for kids to play in the virtual playground at Camp Dizzywood. All the fun of summer camp--without the mosquitoes!

Related Links

• Dizzywood Quests for Change
• Dizzywood Parents Guide
• Facebook > Become a Fan of Dizzywood

 Anyone who works in the youth space knows that when it comes to trends Japanese youth lead the way. Even so, I don't think most of us saw this one coming down the pike.

The latest rage sweeping clubs from Tokyo to Osaka has Japanese youth injecting themselves with saline and creating temporary disfigurements on their faces and other parts of their bodies (use your imagination here folks). The process, commonly known as 'saline inflation' is also known as 'body modding.'

Kyoichi ‘Keroppy’ Maeda, an expert on the saline inflation and other underground trends among Japanese youth, explains the appeal:

"Things like suspensions are really quick. But saline infusion is a gradual process and you become a freak progressively. That’s the joy of it,” he explains. “You can enjoy watching it by having a few drinks and gradually seeing a transformation, but if you’re looking all the time, you can’t see the difference. If you meander off and come back, it’s a real surprise.”

You can check out a gallery of 'bagel heads' over on Bizarre Magazine.

Related Links

• Trend Watch: Smoking Smarties
• YouTube: Saline Inflation (Explict)
• Japanese Youth & Mobile Phone Trends
• The Sexual Revolution of Chinese Youth

Wall Street Journal report Yukari Iwatani Kane has written a great piece about Ari Weinstein, a teen hacker who along with a bunch of other teens he met online, was able to jailbreak the Apple iPhone 3GS and iTouch.

Ari's just your typical 11 year old boy who can hack around the AOL parental controls, figure a work around that allows him to download games onto his iTouch for free and, oh yeah--meet up with other teen geeks online and jailbreak an iPhone.

No Apple isn't happy. And yes, Ari's parents have talked to him about ethics. And oh, they also made sure that Ari got an attorney.

Related Links

• Teens in Tech
• YPulse Mashup: Guy Kawasaki & Teen Entrepreneurs Panel
• Learning Styles 2.0: Digital, Social, and Always On

The Real Life of Teens: The media portrays teens as being 'sexting', binge-drinking louts - but it's just a variation on a centuries-old stereotype. Why are we so afraid of young people? (This is such a great column, well worth reading and a refreshing portrayal of Gen Y.) [Irish Times]

Gen Y Still Love Mum & Dad: They might be young adults making their own way in life, but a new research published by the Australian Institute of Family Studies shows that the wired wonders of Gen Y still value the advice of their parents. [Courier News]

Google Generation is a Myth: Research conducted University College London claims that, although young people demonstrate an ease and familiarity with computers, they rely on the most basic search tools and do not possess the critical and analytical skills to asses the information that they find on the web. [JISC]

Tweet of the Week: "For the record, I keep my billions of virtual dollars tucked safely under my virtual mattress with a virtual rottweiler protecting (via @elusivefish)." Speaking of virtual currency... [Twitter] [Virtual World News]

Hot for Teacher?: A teacher accidentally put pornography into a DVD that was meant to be filled with school memories from the past year, and nobody caught the error until after it was sent home, shocking parents and students alike. Hey DJ--cue the music!. [CBS News] [MTV]

Calling Bullshit on Social Media: "For starters: social media is a stupid term. Is there any anti-social media out there? Of course not." I love this blog post. So. Spot. On. And long overdue [scottberkun.com]

Storytelling 2.0: Penguin Books have launched a great new site that allows kids to play in an unlimited online space where they can create their own virtual stories, books and games for just $10. Once created they can send them to friends to watch, read or play and save them to their own virtual bookshelf. [Digital Buzz via @liamom]

Best Buy® Mobile Survey: Of all Americans with mobile phones, 62% say they use text messaging, mostly because it's a convenient and quick way to communicate. More than one-third (37%) say they use texting to avoid long or tough conversations, and over one-quarter (27%) say they use it because they dislike talking on the phone. One-quarter feel it's a great way to flirt, particularly among the 18-24-year-old set (39%). [Business Wire]

One Last Thing: Corporate types pledge to be more open about tracking consumers online, according to some experts MySpace is now a 'digital ghetto', a new study by FUSE Marketing shows that teens love events, Steve Wheeler on e-learning 3.0 (think mobile!), the abstinence movement gets rebranded, two college kids get a book deal for 'Twitterature', and Nickelodeon launches video games with a pro social message (also related). [AP] [TransComic] [BrandFlakes] [Steve Wheeler] [Alpha Mommy] [Galley Cat] [MediaPost] [Press Any Key]

A new study shows that the more television children watch, the more likely they are to become bullies. Dr. Joseph Wright of the American Academy of Pediatrics explained on The Early Show.

Related Links

• Texas Lawmakers Crack Down on Cyberbullies
• The Power of Play: Cyberbullying Solution?
• Ypulse > Cyberbullying

A few weeks ago I blogged about the 'bagelhead' trend that is popular in the underground club scene in cities like Tokyo and Osaka.

This week it's all about 'manba'....I know, you're asking yourself, "What the heck is manba?" I think TV Mole has the best and most succinct definition:

According to a story about the manba trend on the BBC:

Thankfully, to the best of my knowledge, the 'bagelheads' and the 'manba' folks don't hang out together. Now that would be one heck of a rumble....

Related Links

• YouTube > How To Do Manba Makeup
• YouTube > Getting Ready Manba Style
• YouTube > Para Para Manba Dance
• Flickr > Manba Girls!