Michelle Obama’s Facebook Warning: How Young Is Too Young?

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MSNBC.com

Is a 9-year-old too young to have a Facebook account? How about a 12-year-old? This morning on the Today Show, first lady Michelle Obama revealed that her daughters, Sasha and Malia, are not allowed on the social networking site. (via AP)

In an interview Wednesday, Obama said that she’s “not a big fan of young kids having Facebook,” and that even though her children are faced with a wealth of unusual restrictions, due to security issues, even if the girls weren’t living in the White House Facebook is “not something they need.”

(Facebook Photos: Inside the Facebook Headquarters)

Will she ever allow them to sign up for a profile? “It depends on when we leave and how old they are,” she replied.

Facebook, though honored by TIME Magazine — which named founder Mark Zuckerberg the 2010 Person of the Year — has come under criticism as of late for privacy concerns. Now add another potential scandal to the mix: Is Facebook leading our nation’s young people astray?

Perhaps we’re making too much out of a single comment by the First Lady on a morning television show, but when the wife of the President of the United States speaks about nutrition, exercise or technology use, millions of people pay heed. Only time will tell as to what effect her Facebook comments have in the long run.

Facebook Photos: A Zuckerberg Family Album