Cyberbullying, more than just "messing around"

Whether it is through emails, instant messaging, cell phones, texting or websites, cyberbullying is a growing problem. In the past 10 years 37 U.S. states have adopted legislation mandating that schools implement anti-bullying statutes. "It is becoming something that people recognize as a significant issue as more and more students start talking about it, and unfortunately, as these extreme cases of suicide and students hurting themselves is becoming more prevalent," said Dan Tarplin, the New York Educational Director of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), which fights anti-Semitism and bigotry. Unlike schoolyard taunts or fights, Tarplin said the anonymity of electronic media can embolden bullies and its pervasiveness enables a nasty comment, a harsh remark, an unflattering photo or video to be sent to countless numbers of people in an instant.