News Overview 2021

In social networks, chats and online games, children often come into contact with strangers - not without risk. They should therefore be made aware of the dangers at an early stage and instructed in safety-conscious surfing behaviour. The NRW Ministry for Schools and Education and the NRW Media Authority have published new teaching material on protecting children from cybergrooming.

"Dark Social" is a buzzword that is haunting the news coverage of disinformation and conspiracy narratives. We want to look at what the phenomenon "Dark Social" is actually about and what effects it has on the information behaviour of teenagers and young adults. Leonie Wunderlich from the Leibniz Institute for Media Research | Hans Bredow Institute will help us answer this question.

Children's rights now! - This is the motto under which World Children's Day is celebrated in Germany today. This day is intended to draw attention to the special rights of children. In keeping with this year's motto, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has published the new General Comment to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in child-friendly language.

Having a say, children's rights, fact or fake: In the new SCROLLER, everything revolves around the topic of "digital democracy" and how young people can get involved online.

Excessive use, sexual harassment, cyber bullying - children and young people can encounter many problems on the Internet. It is important that they get help quickly, anonymously and without complications. This is exactly what jugend.support is for. On the advice and help portal, children aged 12 and over can find tips on how to help or protect themselves. jugend.support also refers them to suitable offers of help or advice centres and provides information on how they can have inappropriate content removed from the Internet.

On September 26, the Bundestag elections will take place and many young voters will exercise their right to vote for the first time. An informed opinion based on reliable information is essential for an informed decision. Educational professionals can support young people in learning the necessary skills. The klicksafe handbook "Forming Opinions in the Digital World" provides them with a lot of background information as well as twelve lesson plans for use in schools.

The new school year has already begun in almost all German states. New class chats are currently being set up, especially in secondary schools. However, a lack of netiquette, time or topic limits often lead to excessive demands and problems. Other risks in class chats include cyberbullying and the sharing of pornographic and illegal content. With our materials on the topic of "Our rules for class chat", teachers can inform their students about the risks and set rules for fair and collaborative interaction in the class.

What happens when nude pictures or intimate videos of children and young people end up on the Internet unintentionally? In the Norwegian series "Nudes - Nackt im Netz" (Nudes on the Net), this problem is addressed from the perspective of young victims and perpetrators. The series will be available in the ARD media library until 17.09.2021.

What should the digital world look like in the future? How can we ensure that we promote, respect and protect the rights of all children and young people when they are online? The European Union Commission wants to know from parents and teachers how to protect and promote children's rights in the digital world as part of the #DigitalDecade4YOUth campaign.

There is a lot of good learning content on YouTube - and word of this has spread among educators. However, it often happens that teachers send links to YouTube videos to students without first preparing their class for the use of this platform or involving the parents. The Internet ABC explains what problems can arise and how they can be solved.

Millions of people come into contact with each other online every day through gaming. Unfortunately, things are not always friendly and considerate. We talk to psychologist Dr. Benjamin Strobel about the reasons for this problem and what solutions are available.

Just in time for the start of Gamescom 2021, we have revised the klicksafe Digital Games topic area. In the future, you will find information and tips on possible risks in gaming, how to deal with a suspected video game addiction, youth media protection, and much more. There are also a variety of klicksafe materials and publications from partner organizations.

What is the game about? What age is it appropriate for? What do parents have to watch out for? To coincide with the start of the computer and video games trade fair gamescom 2021 on August 25, we are presenting the NRW Game Guide. The media-pedagogical information service provides competent answers to questions about games.

YouTube stars can turn their huge reach into cash. There are many ways to do this, and because new ones are being added all the time, we have updated our infographic on the subject. Because if you understand how the YouTube system works, you can reliably classify and scrutinize the videos of your idols.

Which camera setting is the right one? How do you edit videos and how do you animate games? Questions like these come up when you want to work creatively with media. But you shouldn't let that discourage you! With the right tools and information sites, you can quickly learn the most important tricks from the pros and use media creatively. This not only adds value to your own media experience, but also allows you to engage with media content in an informed and critical way. klicksafe presents recommended offers.