Berkman Center to Investigate Social Networks and Kids

Harvard's Berkman Center will investigate how and whether it is possible to make social network's more kid-friendly.

"Leading Internet scholars at Harvard University will convene a yearlong task force to explore how children can avoid unwanted contact and content when using MySpace and other popular online hangouts.

The Internet Safety Technical Task Force is the result of an agreement that MySpace reached with all state attorneys general except Texas' in January. Announced Thursday, it will be make up of leading Internet service companies and nonprofit groups, including those focused on children's safety.

MySpace, a unit of News Corp., created the task force, named its members and chose Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet and Society to run it, but the group will operate independently, said John Palfrey, Berkman's executive director. Its recommendations will be nonbinding."

It will be interesting to see whether anything concrete can come out of this.