Spring Break
University addresses Facebook abuse
Meagan Veillion
Issue date: 8/25/05 Section: Lagniappe
Nicholls administration can take action against a student for stalking, harassment or racial comments about another student on Facebook, according to Judy Daniels, dean of student life.
If a student has a problem with another student writing or putting something racial on Facebook, that student can report it to University Police or the Student Life office. The administration then can take disciplinary action. Disciplinary action can come in the form of a letter of reprimand or dismissal from the University.
Students at Ole Miss faced disciplinary actions for the misuse of Facebook in March. The name of a group created by an Ole Miss student indicated that its members wished to have sexual relations with a professor. Days later Elliot Yates, Bryan Jones and Christine Forster were informed that they would face punishment through the Ole Miss Judicial Court. The appropriate use policy at Ole Miss states that students cannot use university telecommunications or computing resources to harass others and may not "possess, willingly receive or distribute obscene material."
More than a month before the incident at Ole Miss a group at Columbia called I Want To Be an Asian Sensation was removed from Facebook. The description of the group implied that Asians are bad drivers, unathletic and Asian women have small breasts, among other things.
A complaint letter was sent to a Facebook staff member by Calvin Sun, on the behalf of the Office of Multicultural Affairs and the Asian American Alliance. The group was immediately removed from the Web site.
Ryan Landry, psychology junior from Thibodaux, said, "I never had a problem with people stalking me. I actually made new friends by using Facebook. I think it is a great way for people to meet."
Chris Hughes, spokesperson for Facebook.com, said "We get E-mails from users who are confused about a message they're getting, how to take advantage of a feature or feel that something is not working correctly in their account."
He also said students often joke about Facebook as a tool for "stalking" but it's funny for a reason; it's very unlikely and rare.
"People definitely use the site to find out interesting information about their friends, but that's a far cry from serious stalking, which is usually the result of border mental-health issues," Hughes said.
Mark Duet, freshman from Houma, said, "I think there shouldn't be anything racial and there should be more security to what you join and create."
Many know Facebook as an online directory that connects people through social networks at colleges and universities. Students can message others, chat with them, poke them, join groups, etc.
There are over 3.4 million users at 832 schools that use Facebook.
If a student has a problem with another student writing or putting something racial on Facebook, that student can report it to University Police or the Student Life office. The administration then can take disciplinary action. Disciplinary action can come in the form of a letter of reprimand or dismissal from the University.
Students at Ole Miss faced disciplinary actions for the misuse of Facebook in March. The name of a group created by an Ole Miss student indicated that its members wished to have sexual relations with a professor. Days later Elliot Yates, Bryan Jones and Christine Forster were informed that they would face punishment through the Ole Miss Judicial Court. The appropriate use policy at Ole Miss states that students cannot use university telecommunications or computing resources to harass others and may not "possess, willingly receive or distribute obscene material."
More than a month before the incident at Ole Miss a group at Columbia called I Want To Be an Asian Sensation was removed from Facebook. The description of the group implied that Asians are bad drivers, unathletic and Asian women have small breasts, among other things.
A complaint letter was sent to a Facebook staff member by Calvin Sun, on the behalf of the Office of Multicultural Affairs and the Asian American Alliance. The group was immediately removed from the Web site.
Ryan Landry, psychology junior from Thibodaux, said, "I never had a problem with people stalking me. I actually made new friends by using Facebook. I think it is a great way for people to meet."
Chris Hughes, spokesperson for Facebook.com, said "We get E-mails from users who are confused about a message they're getting, how to take advantage of a feature or feel that something is not working correctly in their account."
He also said students often joke about Facebook as a tool for "stalking" but it's funny for a reason; it's very unlikely and rare.
"People definitely use the site to find out interesting information about their friends, but that's a far cry from serious stalking, which is usually the result of border mental-health issues," Hughes said.
Mark Duet, freshman from Houma, said, "I think there shouldn't be anything racial and there should be more security to what you join and create."
Many know Facebook as an online directory that connects people through social networks at colleges and universities. Students can message others, chat with them, poke them, join groups, etc.
There are over 3.4 million users at 832 schools that use Facebook.
