Young people’s Internet safety guide ‘Thinkuknow’ launched a new campaign on July 4th, with the aim of getting parents and carers thinking and talking about the importance of discussing sex, relationships and the Internet with their children.
Short film launch
The ‘brand new’ public awareness campaign aims to utilise social media, articles, blogs and films in order to reach out to its audience, with the three month campaign being launched with a short film entitled ‘The world changes. Children don’t’. A spokesperson from Thinkuknow said:
“This short film tells the age-old story of Romeo and Juliet… with a modern twist. It shows how the lives of these young lovers might play out online today, including the Lark ‘tweeting’ and Romeo ‘friending’ Juliet.
“Behind this contemporary remake is the message that, although technology and social media can seem overwhelming and forever evolving, children and young people don’t change. We try to remind parents that (just as when they were young), their children are still exploring and creating their identities, keeping up with their friends and dealing with adolescent pressures.”
From ‘real life’ to online safety
The organisation also makes connections between how communication and support in ‘real life’ can potentially protect children online too. The spokesperson added:
“Although much of this now happens online, we remind them that the kind of parental support and advice which keeps their children safe ‘in real life’ will keep them safer online too. And our Thinkuknow resources can be a useful place to start in thinking about how they might frame these discussions.”
To find out more about the campaign, or Thinkuknow as an organisation, please visit its official website.