Obama Warns Students about Posting on Facebook

President Barack Obama was the first U.S. president to effectively leverage the Internet during his campaign. And we'll probably look back on Obama's use of the Internet in much the same way that historians point to Kennedy's mastery of television debates as a primary reason for him winning the presidency. But Obama is aware of the dangers inherent in posting inflammatory personal opinions or other controversial content on networks such as Facebook and Twitter.

He warned students specifically to be careful about what they post on such networks and noted that things posted online can come back to haunt you later in life. "I've been hearing a lot about young people who, you know, they're posting stuff on Facebook and then suddenly they go apply for a job and somebody's done a search and, you know, so that's some practical political advice," Obama said.

A prominent member of Obama's advisory team, Van Jones, was recently forced to step down from his post as green jobs czar amidst some YouTube footage of Jones bashing Republicans. Amidst all of the controversy surrounding Obama's speeches to the nation's school children, the substance of his speeches was nothing out of the ordinary.

The fact that he took a moment to remind students of the importance of managing their online identity shows that he is media savvy and that he has at least some understanding of the ways in which young people currently communicate.