Cyberbullying Controversy

When a child is being cyberbullied online, should the cyberbully be prosecuted? Definitely, because they would have been violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. The person being bullied or harassed may get seriously hurt mentally and physically. Cyberbullying can also hurt the one being bullied brain. If the Prosecution act is put in place it can also prevent people in the future to stop cyberbullying because they would not want to be prosecuted. When someone is being cyberbullied it can have stultifying effects on the people and can also make the person resort to hurting oneself. In the Radio Interview article, “The dangers of cyberbullying” the author, Brett Warnke, said, “This bill ensures that someone is held accountable for the behavior
that led to someone getting hurt.” This quote says that this won't happen because the one held responsible will be prosecuted. When a someone is bullied it can leave the person wondering if they did something wrong or if they aren't doing something right, which isn't good for the human body to feel that way. Another positive of this proposed bill is if it is put into action, it can deter cyber bullies away from bullying because they will know that engaging in cyberbullying by showing this behavior is a punishable crime by law.
It says in the article “The Dangers of Cyberbullying”. In the Fact Sheet article “What is Cyberbullying” the author, The Ophelia project, states that “Estimates on the prevalence of cyberbullying vary from 10-40% or more” and that “When teens were asked why they think others cyberbully, 81% said that cyber bullies think it is funny.” That quote shows that if you give them a stronger reason not to cyberbully, like that they would be prosecuted, they would lessen their cyberbullying
actions. Further data to help stop cyberbullying is when a child is cyberbullied, it can affect your brain has well as your feelings.
In the online article “Teens: This is how social media affects your brain” the author says “By watching the activity inside different regions of the brain as the teens used the app, the team found certain regions became activated by "likes", with the brain's reward center becoming especially active.” But when someone receives hate comments instead, it can trigger emotions in your brain that have long lasting effects. On the other hand it may seem ridiculous to prosecute someone for something trivial such as cyberbullying, it doesn't seem very small to the person who is being cyberbullied. In fact the Informational Article “Sacrificing the first amendment to Catch Cyber bullies” states that “hurting someone's feelings-even in real life-never justified criminal prosecution.” the effects shown to us might not seem prosecutable, but it would definitely seem that way to those being bullied. The cyber bullies online are definitely culpable for cyberbullying others and should be prosecuted for it. The dangers of cyberbullying someone can have long lasting effects and should be prevented at all costs. We must collaborate to stop cyber bullying once and
forall.