I decided to interview my friend’s daughter, Kerry, who is a sixteen year old with excellent fashion sense and the ability to find the best deal in town. We adults have a lot of fun hanging out with her and getting the scoop on the thoughts of today’s younger generation. Here is my conversation with Kerry regarding her thoughts on Facebook (FB), Twitter, and MySpace.

Dawn: What do you and your friends think about FB and Twitter and how often do you use it?

Kerry: We like FB. We like it because of the wall and posting pictures. Twitter is not a high school thing. FB is a better way to communicate and it’s easier to navigate. No one uses Twitter. We can update our FB status through our blackberries. (Interviewer’s comment—teenagers with blackberries. Hmmmmmmm.) I haven’t tried Twitter but I think it’s kind of dumb. I understand it but it seems like it’s just something else to learn about and if you have FB why have Twitter?

I go on FB about three times a week. My friends are on it more. (Interviewer’s comment—my teenage nieces are on FB all the time.) 

Dawn: What about school stuff? Do you go online to get assignments? Do you communicate with or “friend” teachers?

Kerry: Teachers give assignments through web pages. And they send emails when they change dates of assignments. Teachers are on FB but they don’t “friend” the students. There are cool teachers who we would like to “friend,” but it doesn’t happen. The teachers do sometimes “friend” alumni though.

Dawn: How many FB friends do you have and what type of people do you “friend?”

Kerry: I have about 600 FB friends. I don’t “friend” everyone. If someone sends me a request I make sure it’s someone I know or it’s a friend of someone else I know (for example, someone who goes to school with them). I never “friend” strangers. My FB friends are from my school, other schools, my beach friends, camp friends, etc. I FB friend some of my mom’s friends and some neighbors, but not other relatives like grandparents. My brother is a friend—his profile picture is of the two of us. (Interviewer’s comment—aaaawwwww. I bet he changes that when he gets to college next fall.)

Dawn: What do you think about MySpace?

Kerry: I don’t like MySpace. I had a MySpace account before FB came out and it was cool then, but now it’s not. We don’t go on MySpace anymore. A lot of middle schoolers like it.  

Thanks Kerry! Kerry is an exceptional young woman who does community service working with disabled people at the local YMCA and babysits to make money to pay for her cell phone bill. She’s looking forward to her junior year (but I’m sure is more excited about the summer ahead).

So that’s what the kids (according to Kerry) are saying about some of the social networking sites. Does Twitter have a future with the younger generation? Can Twitter make it easier to use and learn? And can the creators make it relevant and applicable to teenagers? If not, will these teenagers catch on as adults or will Twitter fade away? Things to think about.

And if you’re on Facebook, look up and become a fan of “Grendel the dog.” He’ll appreciate it.

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