Lawmakers in California are considering a bill to punish bullies that harass fellow student via digital means, such as test messages or social networks like MySpace.

Megan Meier Cyberbullying Prevention Act - A federal law has been proposed that defines cyberbullying and specifies penalties (in the form of fines and up to two years imprisonment) for violators. The bill is formally called the Megan Meier Cyberbullying Prevention Act (HR 6123), and was introduced jointly by Representatives from Missouri and California. It anmends the federal criminal code to impose criminal penalties on anyone who transmits in interstate or foreign commerce a communication intended to coerce, intimidate, harass, or cause substantial emotional distress to another person, using electronic means to support severe, repeated, and hostile behavior.

Amends the Harassing and Obscene Communications Act. Creates the Cyberbullying Law. Provides that the offense of harassment through electronic communications also includes the use of electronic communication for making a harassing statement for the purpose of alarming, tormenting, or terrorizing a specific person on at least 2 separate occasions; or creating and maintaining an Internet website or webpage, which is accessible to one or more third parties for a period of at least 24 hours, and which contains harassing statements made for the purpose of alarming, tormenting, or terrorizing a specific person. Establishes penalties. Effective immediately. The new law takes effect January 1st and provides that the Internet safety curriculums in schools will begin with the 2009-2010 school year. The bill allows the age-appropriate unit of instruction to be incorporated into the current courses of study regularly taught in the districts' schools.

"The Case of Internet Piracy" was developed by judges and professors to teach students about the law and the courtroom experience.

Ohio State Bar Association questions and answers on cyberbullying in the schools.

Katherine Evans said she was frustrated with her English teacher for ignoring her pleas for help with assignments and a brusque reproach when she missed class to attend a school blood drive. So Ms. Evans, who was then a high school senior and honor student, logged onto the networking site Facebook and wrote a rant against the teacher, Sarah Phelps.

What preventative steps can we take to reduce the risk of being sued?

Educational video which teaches fair use and copyright laws using Disney Characters.

Research on how perceptions of copyright law affect media literacy educators, by Temple University's Media Education Lab in collaboration with the Center for Social Media, American University. Funded by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

From the Media Education Lab. Sing along to understand copyright and learn about your rights to fair use.

Learn about copyright and fair use with this engaging music video from the Media Education Lab. Transformative use is one of the keys to fair use. This video supports the Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education available at www.mediaeducationlab.com

Revealing Images Sent Via Cellphones Prompt District Attorney to Offer Seminars but Threaten Felony Charges. Images had been discovered on cellphones confiscated at the local high school. The prosecutor gave teens an ultimatum: accept charges of child pornography or enroll in an education course designed to spell out the dangers of sexting.

I am sure that Vermonters don't like the idea of teens sending sexy pictures from one phone to another. Nor do Ohio and Utah parents want their kids using cell phone minutes to bare their bodies with their buddies. Nevertheless, their state legislatures are among the first trying to sensibly ratchet down the penalties for sexting. They are backing away from laws that currently treat a teenager with a cell phone the same way they treat a child pornographer. They know there's a difference between truly dreadful judgment and a felony.

Article discusses "identity" in terms of DIGITAL FOOTPRINT (your online digital trail) and DIGITAL SHADOW (public/private information that is known about you from commercial transactions etc).

A 15-year-old girl from central Pennsylvania faces child pornography charges after police say she sent nude pictures of herself over the Internet. The girl has been charged as a juvenile with possessing, distributing and creating child pornography.

This Is Me project aims to look at ways of helping people to learn more about what makes up their Digital Identity (DI) and at ways of developing and enhancing it. "Digital Identity" is made up of multiple parts - it isn't just what we have published about ourself on the web, but also includes things other people have published about us.

Yet another incident showing use and misuse of technology with no understanding of offline consequences for online behavior. This time, however, it occurs in the workplace and not at school.

Being online is like being in public. Nearly anything that gets posted can come back to haunt you. When you post it yourself, this isn't such a big deal - after all, it's your fault if you post something like the "fatty paycheck" tweet, the Twitter update that resulted in Cisco Systems Inc. revoking a job offer.

More than ever before, employers are searching the Internet for information about potential hires. From your personal website, to your LinkedIn profile, to postings you made on an industry blog, you might be surprised by the amount of information that exists about you online. And in today's employment environment, hiring managers have become increasingly cautious about new individuals they bring on board, meaning that any red flags could carry extra weight. A bit of digital dirt that simply would have been a minor embarrassment only a few months ago might be a deal-breaker today.

Four teenagers were arrested last week in Brown County after they were accused of having nude photos on their cell phones