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News In Brief

Facebook teens ready to un-friend their parents

Daryl Paranada Aug 27, 2010

A survey out this week says a third of teenagers on Facebook are ready to un-friend mom or dad.

The research from AOL and Nielsen shows kids see the web as a way to get away from their parents and not be vulnerable to mom’s embarrassing pictures or “stories.”

Fourteen percent of those surveyed say there are way too many adults on Facebook. Another 16 percent of teens say they’re leaving the site now that their parents have joined.

To which the parents will probably say, “As long as we’re paying for your Internet and computers, we’ll go on whatever site we want.”

[RELATED: Germans to bosses: Get off Facebook!]

Our own Marketplace Morning Report host Steve Chiotakis is one of the adults on Facebook, and he is friends with his mom. He says he actually requested her.

“I knew she was on Facebook and I knew she was probably waiting for me to friend her,” he says, adding that he doesn’t care that he’s friends with her since she doesn’t go on the social-networking site much.

Other findings of the survey:

  • Of the nearly 30 percent of teens who want to un-friend their parents — they’re twice as likely to un-friend their mom than dad.
  • More than half of the children surveyed don’t know all of the friends in their social network
  • 76 percent of parents with kids on Facebook have become friends with their teens

Marketplace is on Facebook. We’d love it if you became our friend or fan.

Are you friends with your parents on Facebook?

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