Middle and high school can be a theater of cruelty, where insecure teenagers find reassurance by tormenting someone weaker and more vulnerable than they. Sometimes humiliation drives a young victim to suicide. Less often, a young man decides to revenge himself on his real or perceived persecutors with firearms. Because the consequences can be life and death, school districts are increasingly held responsible to prevent bullying and guard against violence, with potential liability when they do not.
Social media has made louder and more pervasive the cruel things that used to be said among teens in the cafeteria and written on the bathroom walls. But it has also made these things more visible to adult authority. Not only have social media posts been used as evidence after the fact, but school administrators increasingly pay attention to the stream of student chatter to anticipate and prevent trouble.
