Jezebel: Myspace

Your First Amendment Right To Sexy Lollipop Sleepover Shots

Irin Carmon — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 11:10:56 EDT

"Not much good takes place at slumber parties for high school kids, and this case proves the point," begins an decision upholding the right of high school girls to post sexually suggestive, lollipop-toting shots of themselves online without being kicked out of public school extracurriculars. More »

MySpace Suicide Legal Battle Comes To A Close

Katy Kelleher — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 09:40:00 EST

Federal prosecutors have announced the end of the Lori Drew cyberbullying case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Krause has withdrawn the notice of appeal filed back in July, when Drew was acquitted of three misdemeanor counts for violating MySpace terms. [Wired] More »

Teens Sue Over Fallout From Sexy Pics • Harvard To Offer Class On The Wire

Katy Kelleher — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 17:40:00 EST

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• Two teens from Indiana have brought a lawsuit against their school after they were barred from participating in school activities following the discovery of some racy pictures they posted on MySpace. • More »

On The Subject Of These Alleged Online Relationship "Rules"

Sadie Stein — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 15:40:00 EDT

They're weird, right? I mean, listen to this madness, from today's WSJ: More »

Is Social Networking Actually Hurting Your "Real World" Social Life?

Hortense Smith — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 16:00:00 EDT

The Archbishop of Westminster, Vincent Nichols, head of the Roman Catholic Church in England, claims that "transient relationships" on sites like Facebook and MySpace are detrimental to teenagers and society in general. But is he right? More »

Cat Killer "Likely To Graduate To Adult Crimes" • Obama Tacitly Supports Transgender Rights

Katy Kelleher — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 17:30:00 EDT

• Newsweek has a morbidly fascinating article on accused cat killer Tyler Weinman in which a clinical social worker who does not treat Weinman discusses the possibility that violence against animals may signal future violent behavior against people. • More »

Lori Drew Sentencing Postponed; Judge Considers Case Dismissal

Margaret Hartmann — Tue, 19 May 2009 09:30:00 EDT

Yesterday afternoon, a federal judge postponed the sentencing of MySpace predator Lori Drew to July 2nd, saying he needs more time to decide if the Missouri mom's cyberbullying conviction should be overturned. More »

Everything Old Is New Again

Dodai Stewart — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 09:45:00 EDT

There's a new MySpace web-based game show, BFF, in which best friends are tested on how well they know each other. This ground-breaking idea was also popular in 7th grade. [Variety] More »

The Dude With The Fangs On MySpace? Not Cool

Dodai Stewart — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 09:45:00 EST

A 44-year-old man who describes himself as a "vampyre" faces charges for threatening a 16-year-old girl after she broke up with him via email, saying she was actually a vampire hunter. [CBS News] More »

Defense Wants Lori Drew Verdict Dumped

Katy Kelleher — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 09:45:00 EST

Lori Drew returns to court today for a hearing that will determine whether or not the guilty verdict will stand. More »

Female Cops In Afghanistan Test Gender Roles • Scorned Ex Posts Pictures Of Crime On MySpace

Katy Kelleher — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 17:20:00 EST

• Although Afghanistan has seen an increase in the number of female police officers recently, many of the woman who serve are barred from certain duties, and not allowed to carry guns. • More »

No Felony For Lori Drew

Maria — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 09:20:00 EST

A U.S. attorney has dropped felony charges against Lori Drew more than a month after she was convicted of harassing 13-year-old Megan Meier via MySpace. [UPI] More »

Britney On Hunger Strike?

Dodai Stewart — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 09:00:00 EST

Britney's big eff you to her (chef) dad: Skipping dinner: "Britney thinks that if she doesn't eat much she will lose weight, then people will notice," an insider says. [MSNBC]

MySpace Trial: Jurors Wanted A Harsher Sentence For Lori Drew

Jessica G. — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 09:30:00 EST

25-year old Valentina Kunasz, thejJury forewoman in the recently-wrapped Lori Drew trial, says she can't stop thinking about Megan Meier. "I still have dreams about the testimony," Kunasz admits, according to Wired. Because of her emotional reaction, Kunasz says that she and the other jurors wanted to convict Drew of felony charges rather than misdemeanors. "Trust me; I was so for this woman going away for twenty years. However, on the harsher felony charge, it was very hard to find her guilty on the specific (evidence that was) given to us." More »

Megan Meier's Mother Talks To Today About MySpace Verdict

Margaret Hartmann — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 12:00:00 EST

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Tina Meier was on the Today show this morning to discuss last week's verdict in the case against Lori Drew for harassing her daughter on MySpace. Though Drew was only convicted of three misdemeanors, but found not guilty of felony hacking charges, Meier says she still feels going through the trial was worth it. "It is not about vengeance," says Meier, "it's about bringing justice to Megan and all of the kids who have to endure this every single day." Clip above. More »

MySpace Trial, Day 3: Lori Drew's Daughter Speaks

Jessica G. — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 09:30:00 EST

Day 3 of the trial against Lori Drew, accused perpetrator of cyberfraud, continued on Friday with testimony from Drew's daughter and Megan Meier's former friend, Sarah. Sarah, now 16, testified that Megan said to her, "I don't know if I could live anymore." (Sarah burst into tears when Federal attorney Thomas O'Brien asked her why she didn't tell anyone about Megan's confession of suicidal thoughts.) Much of what Sarah said under oath directly contradicted the testimony of her mom's assistant, Ashley Grills, on whom Lori Drew is placing most of the blame. More on Sarah, as well as the possibility that the case may be dismissed today, after the jump. More »

MySpace Trial, Day 2: Lori Drew Says, "It's Not Like I Pulled The Trigger"

Jessica G. — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 09:30:00 EST

Yesterday was Day 2 of Lori Drew's federal trial for cyberfraud in the tormenting of 13-year-old suicide victim Megan Meier. Day 1 focused on the emotional testimony of Megan's mom, Tina, who described her daughter's depression and last words. Day 2 involved Tina's cross examination by defense lawyer H. Dean Steward and the initial testimony of Drew's accomplice in Megan's tormenting, Ashley Grills, who testified with government immunity. Lori Drew's hairdresser also took the stand, and her testimony about Drew's glee while mocking Megan was perhaps the most damning of all. More »

MySpace Trial, Day 1: Megan Meier's Last Words

Jessica G. — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 09:30:00 EST

It's been a year since we first wrote about Megan Meier, the 13-year-old driven to suicide after being tormented on MySpace by a grown woman posing as a made-up boy named Josh Evans. The trial of that woman, 49-year-old Lori Drew, began yesterday. Drew is being prosecuted in federal court for cyberfraud under a 2005 telecommunications law. The details of the first, highly emotional, day in court are after the jump, including heartbreaking testimony from Megan's mom, Megan's last words, and the prosecution's assertion that Lori "fully intended to hurt" Megan. More »

MySpace Trial Jury May Not Even Hear About Megan Meier's Suicide

Dodai Stewart — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 14:00:00 EST

The latest news on the Lori Drew trial is frustrating and confusing: Apparently the judge will prohibit prosecutors from presenting evidence of Megan Meier's suicide as part of their case. "I don't necessarily think the suicide is relevant to the crime charged," Judge George H. Wu says. He thinks details of Meier's death would "unfairly prejudice the jury." More »

Drew's Due

Maria — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 09:20:00 EDT

Horrible person Lori Drew, may indeed face trial. Drew was charged with conspiracy and accessing protected computers after she created a fake MySpace account to befriend her daughter's ex-friend which eventually led to the girl's suicide. Yesterday evening, a U.S. District Judge sitting in Los Angeles did not rule on a defense motion to dismiss the charges against Drew and Drew's lawyers were told to prepare for trial. [UPI] More »

Federal Judge George H. Wu wants more time...

Dodai Stewart — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 17:20:00 EDT

Federal Judge George H. Wu wants more time to consider a defense motion to throw out the case against Lori Drew. As you'll recall, Drew participated in a MySpace hoax which allegedly led a 13-year-old girl to hang herself. Today, the AP reports that Judge Wu will most likely reject the motion, but wants to look at arguments more closely. Question: Why is he even considering dismissing the case? The trial is scheduled to begin November 18. [LA Times] More »

Collecting "Friends" On Facebook: What's The Point?

Dodai Stewart — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 12:30:00 EDT

Right on the heels of the news that female office workers spend 3x more time with their computers than their boyfriends or husbands comes this article from the Daily Mail, which blames Facebook for "friendship addiction." Psychologist David Smallwood claims that women who are recovering from drug, alcohol and shopping dependency shouldn't be on Facebook (or, presumably, MySpace). He thinks that collecting friends is an addiction, saying: More »

An "internet researcher" has discovered...

Sadie Stein — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 19:15:00 EDT

An "internet researcher" has discovered that porn's internet reign is over: "Young users spend so much time on social networks that they don't have time to look at adult sites." Whereas XXX stuff was previous the top net activity, porn surfing has dropped to only about 10 percent of searches; MySpace and Facebook now occupy the top slots. "As social-networking traffic has increased, visits to porn sites have decreased,'" said the researcher, adding that 18- to 24-year-olds particularly are searching less for porn." Of course, no allowance is made for the fact that these kids probably don't need to look at porn because of MySpace, but...hey, semantics! [New York Post] More »

Lori Drew Pleads Not Guilty In MySpace Suicide Case

Jessica G. — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 16:00:00 EDT

Lori Drew, the worst person on the internet and the evildoer behind the MySpace hoax that arguably drove 13-year-old Megan Meier to suicide, has plead not guilty to charges of "internet fraud and conspiracy to inflict emotional distress," reports the L.A. Times. (For those of you who missed our exhaustive Meier coverage, Drew and an 18-year-old accomplice created a fake MySpace profile for a "Josh Evans" to torment Megan because of some slight towards Drew's daughter. After being rejected by Josh, Megan, who had a history of emotional problems, hung herself.) According to the Wall Street Journal, "The theory of the case seems to be that when Drew registered on MySpace she agreed to certain terms of service that required her to, among other things, provide 'truthful and accurate registration information' and 'refrain from promoting information that' she knew was More »

Bad Girls Club: The Roomates Don't Know What Blogs Are

Tracie Egan Morrissey — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EDT

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On last night's episode of Bad Girls Club, Cordelia — most likely still pissed about that unrequited crush — decided to turn the entire house against Andrea by telling the other girls about her private blog on MySpace. Even though the blog is only viewable by Andrea and serves as her personal diary, the girls got all Harriet the Spy on her, and made her read entries to them, promising not to freak out. But of course, they were so savage in their cruelty that Andrea decided to just pick up and leave the house for good. Clip above. More »

Oh, Really? You Think That's A Good Picture Of Me? Are You Some Sort Of Underminer?

Moe — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 12:30:00 EDT

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You know? I am not a vain person. That is the point of the story, that I am reflective of some sort of neo-tomboy trend, a rising class of women who have tempered and quelled and repressed those instincts for so many years now that the prophecy has been fulfilled, and really, you know? I just don't care. When it comes to prettyness, I try to live off the grid, is how I like to say it, and even on those rare occasions when I am tilting my face to the left so as to minimize the chance that the magnitude of my nose will overwhelm my face into something you might imagine inspired the whole Surrealist movement, it is always a goal of mine, to eschew the pursuit of beauty because, you know, it is just so very ephemeral, in stark contrast to this blog post, ha ha ha ha ha. But anyway, that notion is, after all, why I did not protest when you dragged me up to the roof, where the wind would whip my already, let's face it, stringy and unruly and overgrown mop of hair around to the point of homelessness, or when you decided to crouch down close to the ground when you shot me, which everyone knows is the least flattering angle known to humankind. More »

Dr. Phil Counsels MySpace Addict, Discovers He Has A Profile Of His Own

Slut Machine — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 19:00:00 EST

An engaged couple were on Dr. Phil today to discuss the biggest issue in their relationship: MySpace. The man is a MySpace addict—he has four different profiles for his different "projects"—and was even checking his profile while in the delivery room while his grandchild was being born. But what really bothers his fiancé is that he lists himself as single in his personal info, receives flirty comments and messages from women, and has even cheated on her twice through the networking site. While talking to them, Dr. Phil learned from his producers that he has a MySpace page, too, which was totally news to him. Clip above. More »

"It's My Space. That's Why They Call It MySpace!"

Moe — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 11:45:00 EST

This is the disgraced now-former mayor of Arlington, Oregon, Carmen Kontur-Gronquist, recently recalled from her post. She uploaded this photo of herself to MySpace three years ago and saw no reason to remove it after her election. "I'm not going to change who I am," she said. Very admirable. [KATU] More »

Should Sites Like Facebook Ban Pro-Ana Internet Groups?

Dodai Stewart — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 11:30:00 EST

Happy National Eating Disorders Awareness Week! An eating disorder charity is calling on MySpace and Facebook to do something about pro-anorexia groups. "We believe that the sites should act responsibly," says Susan Ringwood of B-eat, an eating disorder charity. "They have acted to remove other content that is seen as 'dangerous', or could encourage young people to do dangerous things." Research shows that young women exposed to pro-ana websites feel more negative, have lower self-esteem and are more likely to compare their bodies with other women, reports BBC News. But a spokesperson for MySpace explains: "It's often very tricky to distinguish between support groups for users who are suffering from eating disorders and groups that might be termed as 'pro' anorexia or bulimia." More »

M.I.A. "Owned" New York Fashion Week

Jennifer — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 11:30:00 EST

M.I.A. on playing the role of spokesmodel, DJ and popular celeb sighting during NY Fashion Week: "Last year I wasn't let into the Marc Jacobs party and this year I own it!" Ah, groundedness. [Fashion Week Daily]

Naomi Campbell Will Make An Awesome Model Mentor

Jennifer — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 11:30:00 EST

British Fashion Council head Harold Tillman wants to start a "Big Sister" program in which old skool supermodels mentor malnourished up-and-coming mannequins. Leading the way in this admirable new endeavor? Naomi Campbell. [Vogue UK]

Seven Kids Hang Themselves In The Name Of "Networking"

Moe — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 15:00:00 EST

How about a MySpace suicide story seven times more depressing than Megan Meier? Because there's been a spate of hangings in Brigend Wales. It starts with Dale Crole, a 20-year-old straight from juvi who hanged himself in a warehouse and was found a year ago. A friend of Dale's named David hung himself next, and a friend of David's went next, and four more boys followed before last Thursday, when 17-year-old Natsha Randall hung herself in her family basement. Now cops seem to be wondering whether Randall spearheaded some sort of vapid suicide cult. It's hard to say. All the members of the suicide ring had heavy internet habits. A story about Natasha "sxiwildchild"'s page on the social networking site bebo in the Daily Mail portrays her as one of those teenagers whose inability to distinguish right from wrong seems palpably traceable to an inability to distinguish real life from the internet. (The story notes that "Will you have sex with me?" is the fourth question she asks prospective friends on the site. More »

Kids Today: More Narcissistic Than Ever? I Know, It's A Tough One...

Moe — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 14:00:00 EST

Is the younger generation more narcissistic than we are? Well YEAHDUH, but here's something kind of interesting! See, two scholars are engaged in a hot dispute as to whether all the MySpace/Flickr/tumblr/silvr/U.S.AmericanTopModelChefFifthGrader shit actually causes people to be more self-obsessed. The champion of the conventional wisdom is a San Diego State psychologist who wrote a book called Generation Me and is working on another called the Narcissism Epidemic. But now a University of Western Ontario psychologist is about to publish research that suggests the youngs no more narcissistic than any of the generations that preceded them. Wait, is it kinda funny that the anti-narcissism epidemic side comes from Canada and the Generation Me author is in Southern California? A Yale professor thinks so, telling the New York Times that "exaggerated beliefs in social decline are widespread — largely because people tend to mistake changes in themselves for changes in the external world." So people who study narcissism tend to be narcissists? Crazy! But moreover, it's bigger than that: More »

There's Something Wrong With The Kids In Orange County

dodai — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 16:40:00 EST

If you get all your information about the West Coast from movies and TV, then Orange County is truly a mythic place: Home of Lauren Conrad, Kristin Cavallari, Seth Cohen and Botox parties. But there's more to the richie-rich über-conservative enclave than vapid consumption, professional prettiness, plastic surgery and gorgeous ocean views. Like the Spur Posse! And picking on the underdog! Two Newport Beach teenage girls have been arrested for beating a "mentally retarded" girl and posting the video on MySpace. God, we thought it was over-the-top when Luke fought Ryan and said, "Welcome to the OC, bitch. This is how it's done in Orange County." More »

Reader Roundup

Jessica G. — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 16:40:00 EST

Best Comment of the Day, in response to Fabio On George Clooney: "He Is A Dog Whose Noise Is Worse Than His Bite": "Fabio: I Can't Believe It's Not Relevant!" We say: we're just waiting for the day Relevance comes in an easy-to-use spray. • Worst, in response to Teen Rape, MySpace & Child Protection Laws: "Not to be a stickler for grammar but let's check our editing Gals." We say: it's hard to accept grammar lessons from someone with the handle IncredsTotesLovesIt. Just sayin'! More »

Teen Rape, MySpace & Child Protection Laws

Jessica G. — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 09:30:00 EST

Two married strippers, Julio Rojas, 31, and Sophie Soto, 22, were charged yesterday with 56 counts of sex abuse for luring a pair of under 15-year-old girls to their Queens apartment through MySpace. Soto acted as the bait, convincing one girl that she was 18 and had only been with girls before, according to the New York Post. She told the teen that she was scared to have sex with a man. Through a feat of persuasion not outlined in the article, Soto convinced the teen and her friend to send 20 close ups of their vaginas. When Soto finally got the girls to her apartment, she had sex with both of them, after which husband Julio had sex with all three women. After they were done, Soto and Rojas took the girls to a strip club, where the underagers stripped on stage and gave bjs to customers. The most fucked up part? For all of these disturbing, horrific transgressions, the couple faces 15 years in jail, tops. They need some Hard Candy style vigilante justice on their asses, dontcha think? More »

Today's Washington Post has a thorough,...

dodai — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 15:45:00 EST

Today's Washington Post has a thorough, intricately-detailed timeline of what happened to Megan Meier, the teenager who took her own life after being pranked on MySpace. (New research shows that the Web can actually help suicidal teens find support; it's sad Megan wasn't one of them.) You may learn things you didn't know: The Meiers and the Drews were once friends and the Drews took Megan on vacation; they were aware she took medication for depression. Megan had ADD and bouts of anxiety; she had been in counseling since third grade. The last paragraph is heartbreaking: "Josh Evans exists now only as a closed FBI file. In a MySpace survey, he said he wore size 13 1/2 shoes, preferred cappuccino to coffee, didn't smoke or take drugs and had never shoplifted. He sometimes swore. He liked girls with long brown hair and said weight didn't matter. The final question asked what things in his past he regretted. The answer was typed in capital letters, a shout from a nonexistent boy in a virtual world. 'NONE,' he said." [Washington Post] More »

Neil Strauss Joins Forces With '80s TV Dweebs To Teach More Men How To Build "Keno"

Moe — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 14:40:00 EST

Neil Strauss, the The Game author who introduced the world to Mystery and who we can also probably blame for Paul Janka, will soon be dispensing dating tips on MySpace TV with the aid of Corin "Corky" Nemec of Parker Lewis Can't Lose and David Faustino of Married With Children. But since such two iconic figures as Faustino and Nemec obviously don't need the help of a 5'5" bald writer dude in elevator shoes to get chicks, Neil presents them with obstacles to illustrate the pickup power of his tricks. As he explains in his statement:

After watching David Faustino get actual phone numbers with, for example, his identity concealed, his hands tied, and his mouth duct-taped, no guy should ever have to fear approaching a woman under normal circumstances again.

Oh Jesus, they concealed identities here? More »

Barbara Walters' 10 Most Fascinating People Of 2007 Was Actually Fascinating

Slut Machine — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 12:30:00 EST

"Megan Died Never Knowing This Young Man Didn't Exist"

Moe — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 12:00:00 EST

The story of Megan Meier, the 13-year-old who killed herself after being abruptly dissed by a MySpace suitor who turned out to be the sick creation of her ex-friend's mother, has hit the national news circuit full-force. Friday's Anderson Cooper 360 brought us footage of her MySpace profile — "Wait for the one who turns to his friends and says, 'that's her'," reads the headline — and above the parents tell Matt Lauer how it all happened on Today. The story also made GMA and The Morning Show, but no one as yet has named the mom who masterminded the sadistic hoax on TV — though above Megan's mom says the woman "asked me to stop" after the initial newspaper story ran last week, because pretty much everyone in town knows who they are. (You can even make out their names on a police report shown on the CNN clip.) "I flick 'em off whenever I see 'em," the Meiers' next-door neighbor tells the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. More »