“Some teenagers will post without understanding that it’s out there for anyone to see and not just their friends,” said Christian Balden, EHS student.

Both Niles and Sean Byrne, executive director of PreventionWorkz, an area resource center for the education and prevention of drug and alcohol abuse, say it’s ultimately a parent’s responsibility to make sure their teenager is acting responsibly on the Web.

“I think the problem is it’s become such an accepted thing — there’s no fear by the kids of promoting what they’re doing on the Internet,” Byrne said. “They ... don’t fear the consequences from parents or law enforcement.”

Byrne said one of the problems is adults may not be familiar with the advanced technology teens use to blog.

Keeping up with advancing technology and looking out for thousands of students is a tough job that requires constant supervision, said Amber Graham Fitzgerald, school and community relations director of Enid Public Schools.

“The technology department does an outstanding job with cyber security,” Fitzgerald said. “They recognize it’s a job that changes every day, and they have to stay abreast of advances in technology.”

Students can’t access MySpace.com or Xanga.com from Enid Public Schools’ computers and each user can be monitored by administrators with filtering software. Students and their parents sign user agreements, which if violated, can result in a loss of privileges on the school’s computers.

Administrators don’t consider sites like MySpace and Xanga educational or instructional.

In some states school districts have punished students for posting photos of themselves in illegal situations. At Enid Public Schools, the coaching staff or activity sponsor and administrators would consider disciplinary action for students who participate in extracurricular activities.

The bottom line, Niles said, is parents need to be proactive.

“Parents need to talk to their kids, know what they are doing,” he said.

But not all the teens maintain their own Web pages to talk about drinking, drug use and sex. Some teens talk about religious beliefs, or chat with their friends about pop culture or events.

Balden, a member of the PreventionWorkz drama troupe Teens Need Teens, said not all teens use the sites to brag about weekend parties and drinking parties.

“Most teenagers use personal sites to communicate what has been happening in their lives to their friends,” Balden said. “Unfortunately, some teens will take advantage of these sites and post pictures and information the rest of us just don’t desire to see.”

But Balden said he doesn’t know anyone who posts phone numbers or addresses. He said the blogs are more about the teens’ feelings and how their day went.