Social Networking seems to be in the news, AGAIN!

Orkut manages to be in the news in India very often, always for the wrong reasons. Last week a 16-year-old boy was kidnapped and murdered in Mumbai by his “friends”. TV channels were quick to suspect/conclude – the murder was planned on Orkut. But new reports say that the group met “offline” and not “online”. For a change, everyone is happy with the word “offline” and it not being “online”.

Orkut has been in the news earlier for,

• For hosting hate-India communities. Govt was trying to restrict the access of these communities which I believe is correct. Is being patriotic wrong?
• For hosting defamatory remarks about Maratha warrior-king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
• A complaint lodged by Shiv Sena for bashing Bal Thackeray.

Govt decided not to ban Orkut but to monitor it. Must be one boring job to do. Well, monitoring jobs in the Govt may not be always boring. Last year our Govt was monitoring Fashion TV (FTV).

When there is some unrest in India the most common excuse our politicians use to give was ‘we suspect a foreign hand’. Internet age, rather ‘social networking’, has clearly arrived in India. Now we can blame Orkut for all our problems.

As parents what should we do? Should we ask our kids to stay away from these Social Networking sites? I guess we should “monitor” their usage 😉

• My column: Should I use Orkut?