Look elsewhere for opinions on 13-year-old Rebecca Black's autotuned, viral music video "Friday." It's not that hard. More than 43 million people (and counting) have seen the official YouTube version, which was funded by her parents and produced by Ark Factory. And 428,768 people (and counting) have posted their comments on that version of the song. (That doesn't include comments on blogs and reposts, etc.)
What interests me is the criticism over the decision by the Black family itself to even put the song out for the world to see. It was a successful decision by a couple measures -- including "Friday" entering the Billboard Hot 100 at #72 -- but it clearly exposed the 13-year-old Black to an awful lot of sharp and even hateful criticism.
A Forbes blogger draws parallels between the Blacks' decision and other parents' substantial investments of time and money to promote their children through traveling sports. A New York Times parenting blogger had the additional perspective of knowing parents whose child went through a similar viral music hit saga. The Times blogger noted that parents who don't want the critical feedback should consider eliminating the comment sections from their teens' YouTube productions.
Colleen Gengler, a University of Minnesota expert in teen parenting, said the Rebecca Black saga isn't necessarily a warning against teens posting performances or presentations on YouTube. It is a reminder that parents need to work hard to understand what their teens are doing and thinking (both in real life and social media) and how they might respond to criticism.
While teens might not experience the crushing criticism of a viral video, they might experience teasing from mistakes in sports or a school production. And while criticism on social media is often anonymous, it can still have an impact on impressionable teens.
"It does matter," Gengler said. "It is hurtful, but I think parents are in the position to help your child say, 'OK, where is this coming from? Does it really affect me? No, I can't please everyone.'"
"It goes back to that parent-teen relationship," Gengler stressed. "What do parents know about their teen's life?"
If you know and talk about how they might handle criticism, "that helps you prepare them."
