Reputational Risks of Cyberspace Journals like My Space

Nick Bracks, son of Victorian Premier, Steve Bracks, very publicly crashed the family car last week. The Premier gave a heartfelt media conference in response to this event which every parent would have sympathized with. Nick had been drinking. In fact he had a blood alcohol reading of 0.129, when as a P-plater, he should have recorded a .0 reading. In Victoria (Australia) there is zero tolerance for P-platers.

Perhaps that should have been the end of it. Nick will have his day in court. He has had an immediate loss of licence. Thankfully no one was seriously injured. Is the premier in the end, responsible for the actions of his son?

Normally, one would answer, he is not. Nick Bracks is 20. However, Nick Bracks, like 99.9% of young people has a My Space page. And here lies the rub. He uses his My Space page as a personal journal, boasting about his drinking exploits for all to read. Suddenly a foolish son crashing his car takes on a whole new dimension. Mr Bracks Junior has created a significant reputational issue for his father and the Government of Victoria.

Whistleblowers and disgruntled employees are potential reputational hazards during a media crisis, but have you considered the hidden reputational dangers through My Space, Blogs and Second Life? Many people live fantasy lives on line. Often the fantasy and reality meld, providing opportunities for rants against friends, family, society and employers.

Keep a radar out for negative blogs or My Space postings. Your staff is an important part of your message. If employees are using the web as a space for a public whinge, it has the potential to chip away at your reputation as an employer of choice, or as an organisation of high esteem or whatever your reputation might be.

If you do become aware of some negative material being posted by an employee, tread very carefully. Perhaps they haven’t thought through the potential damage they could cause. They might just see their rantings as an opportunity to let off steam. A quiet word might be all that is necessary.

A similar issue re My Space was exposed a few weeks ago in the aftermath of the tragic shooting in the centre of Melbourne. Both women who were injured, one shot and one severely punched, had My Space pages. In these pages, they represented themselves as very worldly, with raunchy photos and sexually provocative statements about themselves. Their parents spoke out about this portrayal of them in the media, saying they were not like this. Unfortunately, these young women had not thought about the potential public nature of their pages.

Perhaps Gen Ys don't think through the consequences of posting intimate details of their lives for potentially the whole world to read, or perhaps that adds to the vicarious danger of their posts, but for parents and employers their words can have damaging repercussions. Develop a reputational radar. Find out how cyberspace is being used by your staff and your children. And perhaps a quiet reminder of the potential dangers of public exposure might be all that is needed to help your Gen Ys be a little more circumspect in the public detailing of their lives.