hi5 (http://www.hi5.com)

common sense media says

Global social networking has some iffy content.


parents & educators say

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that this 60 million+ member global community of personal sites is similar to other social networking sites with sometimes inappropriate content in photos (scantily clad women in suggestive poses) and postings (swearing, references to drinking and drugs), lots of bells and whistles to communicate with online "friends," and privacy settings to limit who views your personal page. There are a lot of different languages and cultures represented here, and users can subscribe to other people's "channels."

Educational value: There's a safety section for parents and teens that suggests teens "avoid" getting together with someone they meet online. But, it adds, if they do meet an online friend to do it in public and bring a parent along. This doesn't stress how dangerous it may be under any circumstance to meet an online stranger.
Positive messages: The global aspect of hi5.com adds an interesting twist to the mix of social networking sites. Many different cultures and languages represented. Of course, there's a lot of iffy behavior that kids shouldn't be a part of.
Violence: As with any social networking site, content varies on each page. Some profiles have violent content (posts or music videos), while others don't even go there.
Sex: As with any social networking site, content varies on each page. Unfortunately, the page names don't always give an accurate clue to content. For example, one site listed under sports and recreation is all pornography.
Language: As with any social networking site, content varies on each page. There's a lot of swearing on some personal pages, but a lot of pages are very clean.
Consumerism: Ads from major corporations like AT&T, as well as music videos, TV show clips, and more.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking: There's some talk (and photos) of underage drinking and drug usage, and some people brag about doing both.

More on hi5

What to talk about

Talk to your kids
Families can talk about Internet safety with social networking sites. Why is guarding your personal information -- and your personal image -- on social networking sites so important? What information should you include in your profile and what should you leave out?

Is it any good?

Is it any good?
 
As on most social networking sites, questionable content does pop up. The little hi5 "give 'em five" icons all over the place let users post the icons to each others' sites to "describe how you feel about your friend" -- with an option to delete if your "friend" doesn't feel very good about you. Don't miss the site's safety sections for teens and parents, and consider recommending to your teen that he or she use the privacy settings to control who can see their page. Otherwise it's global, quite literally.

This review was written by Dana Villamagna
 
 

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What parents & educators say

5

Most useful reviews by all members

Diego Martinez
teen, 15 years old
 

deangelo
teen, 16 years old
 
if
if myspace ok hi5 is

9001
teen, 15 years old
 
Mature, older teenagers only.
If there is a possibility of you being tricked into going to a porn site from there, it's not for kids.

girlyPCgeek
teen, 15 years old
 
I used to have one of these accounts
I used to have a Hi5 account, and NO ONE AT ALL talked to me on there, in fact the settings wouldn't work...I went to change my "basic info" from Male to Female and it wouldn't work...well it seemed to, until I saved it...that was a diff. story... Hi5 sucks Myspace= awesome

 
alegre y bolo
hola soy de el salvador vivo en estadodos unidos ase 12 ans megustaria cono cer jente de otros pa ises aser amigos

JickJack23
kid, 13 years old
 
Its okay for the younger kids if they follow the rules and dont view or do anything inappropriate. Better for teens because they might know what they are doing better.

 
lababygir
ilovet

calixta
teen, 17 years old
 
i wanted
i wanted to make some friends but now i m hopeless

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About our rating system
ON: Content is appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child, some content may not be right for some kids
OFF: Not age appropriate for kids this age