Children are being groomed by alcohol companies years before they reach the legal drinking age, through advertising on Facebook, researchers say. Massey University health psychology associate professor Antonia Lyons says checking Facebook was part of their everyday routine and it was used as a platform to organise social events, many of which revolved around drinking. Read more
Parents should address concerns about their children’s online activity “early and without fear” – says an internet safety expert who was a speaker at NetSafe’s conference “Our community: Our challenge” which took place in Wellington this week. However, it is important for parents “not to overreact, to try to calm down a little bit, and Read more
For all Il Papa’ssocial media encouragement the last few years, the Roman Catholic Church continues to struggle with digital ministry practice, particularly where new media intersects the church’s medieval sacramental structure. In 2011, a new smartphone app aimed to support preparation for and the practice of confession ended up generating more confusion than contrition when Read more
A family and their parish in Minnesota are in conflict after a teenage son missed out on the sacrament of confirmation because of his Facebook post in support of same-sex marriage. Lennon Cihak, 17, was on track to be confirmed at Assumption Church, Barnesville — until parish priest Father Gray LaMoine saw the teenager’s photo Read more
The US bishops’ conference has launched a Spanish-language Facebook page to cater to the growing number of Hispanic populations in many areas of the country. “Hispanics make up 16 percent of the total US population, almost 40 percent of US Catholics, and 50 percent of US Catholics under age 25,” explained Bishop John C. Wester Read more
The head of Rotorua Boys’ High School has apologised for an attack outside John Paul College involving his students. Boys’ High principal Chris Grinter has also warned his students about their use of Facebook after comments posted on the social networking site sparked the fight outside the Catholic school. Students from Boys’ High were thought Read more
Mark Zuckerberg and new wife Priscilla Chan were spotted brushing up on some Italian architecture as they toured the Sistine Chapel during their honeymoon in Rome. Snapped by a fellow culture-vulture, the Facebook CEO wandered around the chapel in the Vatican with a priest and tour guide, occasionally placing an affectionate hand on his new Read more
A British Canon, Rev Paul Shakerley, has apologised for the rather unholy language he placed on his Facebook page. Peter Burrows, bishop of Doncaster, met with Shakerley and said the Canon regretted the language and had removed the entry on Facebook. “Whilst meant in a jocular sense, he recognizes that some of the language was Read more
Many Australians are using Facebook to find out about the Church following an advertising campaign run on the social networking site last year. The Catholic Enquiry Centre, Australia, has received 327 inquiries from January to March this year compared with 543 for all of 2011. They also reported that Facebook advertising accounted for 33.6 per Read more