Free speech is one of those topics that always sends people in a tizzy. Most would agree that censorship is a bad thing, but at the same time, it’s not right to yell “fire” in a crowded theater. Unless, of course, the theater really is on fire.

This idea is tricky enough when you’re talking about books and speeches and what people say on TV. Social media, makes it even trickier. Take Twitter. It’s a public forum where people can feel free to say whatever they want — to a point. Twitter doesn’t allow excessive spam or threats and they don’t allow you to print the contact information for your ex-girlfriend. Common sense stuff.

Xander: “Sure he says he’s a high school student, but I can say I’m a high school student.”

Buffy: “You are.”

Xander: “Okay, but I can also say that I’m an elderly Dutch woman. Get me? I mean, who’s to say I’m not if I’m in the elderly Dutch chat room?”

Xander makes a good point. The one cool and also creepy thing about communicating over the internet, is you can be anyone you want to be; a high school student, an elderly Dutch woman or Snow White.

People create alternate personas in order to be better than who they are or to fit in with the crowd on a particular site. People also hide their real identity to prevent embarrassment or for a more nefarious reason. They also do it to stop websites from using their data.

Google+ has just lowered their minimum age requirement from 18 to 13. Young teens everywhere couldn’t care less.

Google VP Bradley Horowitz makes a great pitch though. . . .

Teens and young adults are the most active Internet users on the planet. And surprise, surprise: they’re also human beings who enjoy spending time with friends and family. Put these two things together and it’s clear that teens will increasingly connect online. Unfortunately, online sharing is still second-rate for this age group.

Oh, snap! Did he just call Facebook “second-rate?” So he didn’t mention them by name, but come on. . .

While it may seem like a big deal that the most powerful sports league in the US (and maybe the planet), the NFL, is letting it’s players tweet during a game but let’s not run around ringing in the new era of social media and sports.

It’s pretty fascinating to consider, right? A player comes off the field after an incredible catch or incredible hit and immediately tells his followers how he feels. It’s the ultimate in letting the fans in on the emotion and intensity of such an emotional and intense game like football. From Yahoo we read

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has been accused of turning the NFL into the “No Fun League,” but Wednesday, he took a bold step to fight back against that label. He’s not only allowing players to tweet during the Pro Bowl ‒ he’s setting up computer stations on the sidelines to help them do so.