How Young Is Too Young For Facebook?
BOSTON (CBS) -- Facebook and parenting hit the headlines when first lady Michelle Obama said she's not a fan of the social network website for "young kids."
As for daughters nine-year-old Sasha and 12-year-old Malia she doesn't believe Facebook is "something they need."
It's got some parents thinking how young is too young for a Facebook account.
"I think someone should be in high school before they're allowed to use Facebook," said one parent.
WBZ-TV's Beth Germano reports.
14-year-old Corinne Gaucherin knows well the lure of Facebook. "In the beginning it's very addictive," she said. So addictive she can now spend one hour on the social media website, and only between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. when the account shuts down.
"You have to educate your children, put boundaries on it," said her mother Paula Gaucherin.
The Gaucherins admit it's been a work in progress with the popular site. The computer now sits in a common family room for monitoring.
"We are not going to let her have a laptop in her bedroom, behind closed doors, and just run amok on it," said her mother.
Surveys show 75 percent of teenagers have a Facebook account, and 27 percent use it daily.
For Corinne Gaucherin it's both social and helpful for school projects and schedules. She has to "friend" her mother and now says she's glad. "I probably would have made mistakes I would have regretted," she said.
