As Youth Advisory Board member Carline Marques described in her article on dating in the Facebook age, “Teens don’t use Facebook as a social dating network exactly, but they definitely use it to stalk their crushes…. Facebook makes it easy — you cruise their profile, check out their pictures and friends, see their music tastes, and if they talk to you every time you’re online, then score!”

Over on Social Times, Amy Summers thinks most people wouldn’t want to know who’s been checking out their profiles, and wouldn’t want others to know who they’ve been checking out…or how often or for how long. But since online stalking is anonymous, most of us do it anyway, to some degree. Of course, one can control one’s “stalkability” though privacy settings.

Still, Caroline is right, Facebook makes it easy to check out your crush. And just in time for Valentine’s Day, some enterprising young developers created new apps for the lazy stalker. Breakup Notifier tells you when your friends that you are interested in have changed their relationship status, and iWould lets you identify which friends you’re romantically interested in, and if they’ve also said they’re interested in you, both of you are notified so you can get going on that relationship.

The challenge with social media is that it’s always on, so we never have to take a break from it. It can be a problem when it comes to bullying in school that makes the leap to bullying online…and also when it comes to relationships. Sure, simply “cruising” someone’s profile is a long way from going “Kelsey Krazy,” but where do we draw the line? Is checking someone’s profile daily stalking? Or is checking several times a day? Is it stalking if you’ve met the person in real life, or if they’re only an online friend? Is it stalking when you follow all of their streams — Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, Flicker, etc.?

High school and college students are getting wise about managing privacy settings and content they post to their profiles to maintain their image online, but it might be time to add a discussion of morals and ethics of online stalking to the mix. And the sooner the better before we all need a 12-step program to relieve us of our social stalking addictions.

- Virgin Mobile turns to Lady Gaga (and 10 lucky bloggers to grow its “likes” on Facebook. The bloggers will compete to cover stops on Gaga’s Monster Ball tour, with fans voting to determine who gets to be an official Gaga blogger with special VIP access to the show and venue. Lady Gaga also announced that her single “Born This Way” will drop this Friday, rather than revealing it Sunday at the Grammy Awards) (Mashable) (MTV)

- Most Gen Yers (and Gen Xers — particularly men — rely on online research to make purchase decisions, though most say they can’t find all the info they want online) (Mediapost)

- The NBA and Marvel (partner to introduce a new line of clothing and hats featuring superheros in NBA team gear. New York Knicks and LA Lakers will be the first lines released, timed to coincide with the Feb. 20 All-Star Game. Who doesn’t want to see the real Superman in an Orlando Magic jersey?) (Kidscreen)

- Behind the scenes with Willow Smith (at her Teen Vogue fashion shoot, New York magazine finds out the starlet gets her “schoolgirl meets punk” style from shopping at Target and CVS)

- Atlanta-native B.o.B. (performs his Grammy-nominated hit “Airplanes” while en route to LA on Atlanta-based Delta Airlines, proving that flying can still be fun (sometimes). Another viral video making the rounds today comes from unsigned singer Christina Grimmie, who is leading Selena Gomez, Rihanna, and Justin Bieber in votes in the My YouTube competition. The top five vote getters will receive “massive exposure” on the website’s U.S. and international homepages) (Billboard)

- The Oscars (goes after the 18-34 year old audience with new live streaming coverage of the event. Oscars.com will offer free access to live feeds from the red carpet, and for $4.99, viewers can stream a live feed from behind the scenes in the control room and press room. The event’s iPhone app has also been upgraded with more social media connectivity) (Ad Age, reg required)

- Top 10 Old Spice parodies (From the hilarious “New Spice” to the adorable “The Boy Your Man Could Smell Like”, a roundup of the best brand satires. Also, is Old Spice post-racial?) (Social Times) (Daily Beast)

- Playboy launches SFW (a.k.a. Safe-For-Work) site (So everyone can read the, um, articles safely from their desks) (Yahoo)

- Fast food companies embrace social media (Using Facebook, Twitter, etc. to get instant feedback on food and service from early adopters. Plus, Dr. Pepper gets a slap on the wrist after posting offensive promotional Facebook updates on fans’ walls) (MediaPost, reg. required) (Guardian)

- Cartoon Network buys ‘Hole in the Wall’ (A human-Tetris-like game show formerly on Fox. Plus, the Discovery Channel networks will serve as a platform to generate attention around the launch of the new Hasbro kid’s channel) (Variety, reg. required) (MediaPost, reg. required)

- Virgin Mobile targets teens (Their new “Don’t Be Stupid, Be Crazy” campaign, is aimed at 18- to 24-year-olds and hopes to change their rep away from pay-as-you-go) (Ad Age, reg. required)

- The Allure of the Adventure Teen (Sailor teen’s fame is fueled by our youth-obsessed culture, or, according to Jezebel, “the pure energy of youth, untainted by hysterics about ADD culture, MTV, the Internet and porn”)

- Tim Burton to direct Monsteropocalypse (Disney announced plans to turn the boardgame into a 3-D flick for DreamWorks) (Variety, reg. required)

- Nick knocked (for a high number of ads promoting unhealthy eating habits to kids. According to an analysis by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), “nearly 80 percent of food ads… are for foods of poor nutritional quality.” In lighter Nick news, a new tween comedy “Big Time Rush” is described as “The Monkees” meets “Entourage”)  (CBS News) (The Boston Globe)

- Community centers and older teens (the disconnect between programs and teenagers forces organizers to rethink outreach efforts and best strategies for keeping youth involved. Also an anti-meth campaign featuring teens raises controversy) (Boston Globe) (Dalton Daily Citizen)

- OMG Girlz and WTF Boyz (the girl band and boy band formed by Lil Wayne and TI’s daughters and Dr Dre and 50 Cent’s sons, respectively. Adorable nepotism, no? Also MTV’s Staying Alive Foundation will release Travis McCoy’s charity track “One at a Time” tomorrow to coincide with World Aids Day) (Guardian) (Variety)

- WSJ on Campus (college resource site Unigo.com and the Wall Street Journal launch a new brand to promote insider campus content from student journalists. Check out the kick-off interactive webcast on Wednesday for more details. Also, see my my post on campus-based newspaper initiatives last week. Ask and you shall receive, no?)

- BullyProof (BBC launches a new campaign targeting online bullying with the help of major players Bebo, Facebook, Habbo, MySpace and others. Also an Oxford prof enthusiastically promotes web games as a resource for teaching math) (via Derek Baird::Barking Robot) (Reuters)

- Vevo launches (the music video hub backed by Vivendi’s Universal Music and Sony Music will go live on December 8. Plus Hulu considers a move to a closed model) (USA Today) (BusinessWeek)

- Is ‘Glee’ anti-Christian (according to this Time article on the show’s not-so-hidden moral messages, only at first glance. Plus MTV defends its upcoming Jersey Shore reality series after a national service organization expressed concerns over how it would portray Italian-Americans) (Reality TV World)

- MTV airs ‘Avatar’ webcast (on MTV.com and Facebook this Thursday featuring a roundtable discussion with some of the movie’s stars and director James Cameron) (Variety)

- Virgin Mobile Monster Ball with Lady Gaga (extend the “Free I.P.” program to a national tour, offering fans who volunteer their time to homeless youth organizations access to free show tickets. Plus Portfolio on nonprofits using social media to get teens involved in community efforts like blood banks and food drives. Check out the amazing teen response to Fort Hood)

- Westwood College ads provide a lighthearted nudge (to go back-to-school, featuring grads who were stuck in dead-end jobs until college offered a way out. Also a breakdown from Westwood College of the average college student’s budget) (MediaPost, reg. required) (Campus Buzz)

- Virgin Mobile rewards do-gooders (with “Free I.P.” passes to the brand’s sold-out FreeFest festival. Also Kia signs on again as sponsor for the Vans Warped Tour) (MediaPost, reg. required)

- Mobile phones gaining on PCs (as the tech device of choice among young women. Plus, Urban Outfitters heeds the call and goes mobile) (MarketingVox)

- ‘Girls Are Not For Sale’ (Beyonce and Halle Berry join the campaign against child sex trafficking inspired by the recent Showtime documentary on the subject. Also a look at the unsettling trend of eating disorders among tweens on “The Early Show”)

- More on Nielsen’s teen research (an interview with Nic Covey [who commented here] in MediaLife Magazine… Plus, emarketer charts Fuse’s research on teens and advertising [Fuse is a Ypulse sponsor])

- Zwinky Cuties joins with SmartyCard (to offer virtual incentives for tweens to study up. And Disney promotes tween virtual world Club Penguin across Spil Games portals. While RuneScape allows researchers into its popular tween MMO) (Virtual World News) (MacArthur)

- Nick’s ‘AddictingGames Showdown’ winners (were announced including Electric Man 2 for “Best Performance by a Stick Figure” and Magic Pen as “Mostest Edumacational Game”)

- James Frey tries YA for size (shopping a sci-fi series  he’s working on with another author to publishers in New York) (New York Times, reg. required)

- MTV launches celebrity lookalike game show in India (on Facebook. Also 9 youth marketing trends in South Africa) (Radio and Music) (Marketing Web)

Correction for Newsletter Readers: In yesterday’s Essentials it should have read that the publicity stunt for Walkman was in honor of the brand’s 30th birthday, not 13th. Oops!

P.S. We just launched a campus subgroup as part of the Ypulse LinkedIn group for folks trying to reach students. Check it out!

Barbie shakes up Shanghai

- You can lead Gen Y to a branded network (but you can’t make them join. According to a recent study less than half sign up after a visit to a branded site or fan page. Plus, Skittles has second thoughts about Twitter after pranksters start messing with the brand. Also Social Times talks to HerHotSpot founder about the social site for Gen Y women and how Facebook Connect opens doors for niche networks) (MediaPost, reg. required) (Biz Report)

- Black teens at increased risk for suicide (according to recent research there’s been an upward trend, especially among girls. Also a review of “Teenage Response” a new documentary from Germany that sits down with teens to talk candidly about sex, drugs and other hardhitting issues) (Variety)

- SLVR (a new non-sporty line from Adidas for millennials debuts in New York. Also Candie’s take a chance on Britney, signing the rehabilitated pop star up as spokesmodel) (New York Times, reg. required) (WWD)

- Will physical yearbooks become a thing of the past? (more high schools around the country are doing away with them for economic purposes. For so many reasons, I hope this isn’t the case. Plus, Duct Tape announces their annual competition to create a prom dress out of adhesive for a chance at scholarship money) (The Arizona Republic) (Jezebel)

- Student files defamation suit against Facebook and classmates (after allegedly being cyberbullied on the site. Also Miley Cyrus chronicles her history with bullies in her memoir) (MediaPost, reg. required) (MTV News)

- Virgin Mobile grows up (CEO Dan Schulman talks about the brand’s evolution past making an “exclusive youth play”) (FierceWireless)

- Teens take on ‘Toddlers and Tiaras’ (fighting to get the reality show about child pageantry off the air for its sexualization of children. They have my vote) (Strollerderby)

- ScapeNation (a tween retailer launches a virtual world and plans to release a line of clothes based on the digital characters. Sounds vaguely familiar) (Clickz)

- ‘The Education bubble (after years of constructing new buildings, adding new faculty members and expanding programs, private universities and the attending students are now paying the price. Also, how school districts are getting creative in order to make the most of their budgets) (New York Times, reg. required) (MSNBC)

P.S. Youth Advisory Board Member Akanksha Aurora is interviewed over at The Future Is Bright.

- Virgin Mobile sponsors Britney’s Circus tour (the tour will also coincide with the launch of Virgin’s new multimedia Ocean 2 device, which select fans will be given to chronicle a private show)

- Your Voice, Your Rights (Rutgers University announces a new sex ed advocacy portal for teens where they are encouraged create profiles and discuss the sexual health issues that matter to them)

- Narnia revived (Fox picks up the franchise Disney dropped a month ago) (Variety)

- Pew Generations Online (pdf.) (a generation-by-generation rundown of who’s going online and why. Also the recent study from Harvard’s Internet Task Force stirs a debate over online predators and whether they actually pose a threat. Attorney Generals say yes but can’t seem to back it up…) (Pew Internet & American Life Project) (CNET News)

- Sasha and Malia mania continues (with the paparazzi foaming at the mouth for candid shots) (Jezebel)

- Teen girls can be comic book fans, too (and publishers are taking notice. Plus Mattel takes Barbie’s dream house online as part of their new digital initiative) (Publishers Weekly) (USA Today)

- Brands with fans on Facebook (Coke tops the list and Nutella comes in second. Missing from the top 20? Pepsi. Also, apparently 302 is the optimal number of Facebook friends. That’s right. No more, no less) (influxinsights) (Psychology Today)

- Bands embrace Twitter to break news to fans (as Anastasia suggested yesterday, this may be the incentive they need to get on board. Plus the Kids Online Podcast offers news about kids online safety and gaming) (MTV News)

- Not such a great shlep after all (Grandparents are making the move to be closer to their grandchildren) (Christian Science Monitor)

P.S. Check out the latest vlog on our Ypulse YouTube Channel from Youth Advisory Board member Michael Hayball. Michael used his snazzy new Flip camera (Thanks Flip!) to review a live performance of the comedy show “Tim and Eric Awesome Show: Great Job!”

P.P.S. Take a look at the top 25 teen submissions featured in Sweet Designs magazine as selected by editor Stephanie Lynn, who also volunteered at our Boston event.

Make Your Message Mobile

Panelists:
Stephen Randall, CEO, LocaModa
Sarig Reichert, Vice President, Flixwagon
Thi Linh Wernau, Senior Mobile Stratgist, Nokia

Moderator: Allison Mooney, Senior Director of Trends & Research, Fleishman-Hillard

Part One
Part Two (Q&A)

Keynote: The Virgin Mobile Festival and Related Pro-Social Initiatives

Ron Faris, Director, Brand Development and Partnerships, Virgin Mobile USA

Virgin keynote

Sponsored Case Study: myYearbook Reaching Millions of Teens Through Cause Marketing

Geoff Cook, CEO, myYearbook

myYearbook Case Study

Sponsored Case Study: Hangout Industries Making Social Networking Fun: Immersive 3D Virtual Rooms

Pano Anthos, CEO, Hangout Industries

Part One
Part Two

Sponsored Case Study: Reach Messaging

Jeff Bishop, Co-Founder, Reach Messaging

Reach Messaging

How to Reach Youth on Social Networks

Panelists:
Manish Chandra, CEO, Kaboodle
Geoff Cook, CEO, myYearbook
Jordan Goldman, Founder and CEO, Unigo
Joe Marchese, President, SocialVibe

Moderator: Robin Raskin, Founder, Kids@Play

Part One
Part Two

- And the numbers are in (for “Twilight’s” much anticipated opening weekend. Not surprisingly, the “Twihards” came through in a big way at the box office. Plus Summit Entertainment gives fans something to look forward to by announcing plans to start production on the sequel, “New Moon.” Thanks, Derek!) (CNN) (Variety)

- Is Gen Y in need of a reality check? (Report shows millennials’ self-esteem may be too high for their own good. Also despite recent positive findings on internet usage, CBS still begs the question ‘Is today’s youth too dependent on electronics?’ Perhaps they should check out these surprising survey results that actually suggest American kids may be lagging behind other countries in internet usage. Thanks Chad from Teen Scene Mag!) (USA Today) (CBS) (Yahoo!Tech)

- This space for rent? (a high school teacher sells ad space on tests to make up for funds lost during budget cuts. Also homecoming dances get a downgrade during the financial crunch) (San Diego Union Tribune) (New York Times, reg. required)

- MyGingerhead.com (Virgin Mobile’s new viral campaign for holiday cards lets you turn yourself into a cookie cutout caricature)

- New video site (IGN.com announced video production and distribution deals with various Web creators, including CollegeHumor, ScrewAttack.com, g-NET and Comedy.com) (press release)

- Toons for teens (like “Family Guy” and “American Dad” work for Fox. Saturday morning kids’ shows on the other hand? Not so much. The channel plans to ditch the two-hour block in favor of infomercials) (Media Life) (Cynopsis Kids)

- Millennial journalists (lead the way by embracing new media usage) (MediaPost, reg. required)

- Kia steps into the ring (of contenders vying for Gen Y drivers’ attention. The gimmick? An interactive microsite that can be accessed via “Soul Cards”) (MotorTrend)

- Green Candy (offers financial advice tailored to Gen Y’s needs) (press release)

- More on Virgin Mobile’s HY-TV (Next Great Thing’s Twitter interview –aka twitterview– with Jill Okawa, manager of Virgin Mobile’s Pro-Social marketing group) (Next Great Thing)

- What I Saw and How I Lied (wins the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature. Apparently, no one was more surprised than author Judy Blundell herself. Plus Spike Jonze talks to Ain’t It Cool News about the upcoming film version of the children’s classic “Where the Wild Things Are”) (GalleyCat) (New York Magazine)

- Is Gen Y brand-resistant? (Or just discerning about which the ones they care to acknowledge?) (eMarketer)

- Hannah Montana climbs the charts (in doll form. Barbie still holds the top spot, but Miley’s mini me shot up four spaces on this year’s hot-toy list) (MediaPost, reg. required)

- A ban on fast food ads aimed at kids? (NIH says it could cut national obesity rates by as much as 18%. Meanwhile Burger King tries to do their part by limiting sodium in kids meals) (AdAge, reg required) (Reuters)

- Nokia awards HABBO founders (for their popular virtual world for teens) (press release)

- Financial security (a tricky concept for younger employees to put into action. Plus Harris Interactive study finds both Boomers and Gen Y look to their employers for education about employee benefits) (MediaPost, reg. required) (Press Release)

- Teens take a stand against bullying (by reaching out to one victim with a powerful collection of letters. Also the scientific view of peer pressure. And a Ypulse commenter recently pointed out this TMZ-stye site High School Tabloid. Seems like a potentially dangerous combo) (USA Today) (Science News)

- American Apparel finally steps over the line (and uses nudity in their banner ads. Japanese clothing company Uniqlo takes a slightly tamer route to promote their new bra top, recruiting hundreds of women for a video survey and posting the results on Uniqlo Try) (Agency Spy) (via Trendcentral)

P.S. Check out this If I Were President series on 247 Townhall (Mos Def wants National Pudding Day!)