Yik Yak: The latest trouble for high school athletes

By Chris Doelle
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Updated: October 10, 2014

(Yik Yak)

If you haven't heard of the app, Yik Yak yet - you will be hearing a lot more about it soon. The app allows users to post thoughts twitter-style, but anonymously. Anyone within a 1.5 mile radius of the post can see and respond to the post.

The problem comes from the anonymity. When there is no way to tie a comment to a person, the likelihood of it being negative skyrockets. That is exactly what is happening in high schools around Texas and the country. Students have been called out by name and harassed and numerous bomb threats and hoax reports of school shootings been posted on the network already.

News Channel 10 in Amarillo recently reported on troubles at the Pampa High School campus involving cyber bullying. School officials there contacted the app developers and had them set a 'geo-fence' fence around the campus which disabled use of Yik Yak in the school buildings during school hours. These requests have flooded the company prompting them to make the service available to anyone that requests. To get your school 'geo-fenced' instructions are available on their website.

Although the company says the app is designed for college students, the fact that it is anonymous means anyone of any age could be using it. The app is actually very popular on college campuses because the limitation of distance leads to little bubbles of conversation for each campus. Reading through Yaks on various area college campuses however, shows that the maturity level of the postings is not noticeably increased. There is just as much bullying, crudeness, racism and hate going out on college Yaks as high school.

This is just the latest in what will certainly be an ongoing and ever-changing battle to protect our kids, students and student-athletes from predators as well as themselves.

Yik Yak, the Atlanta-based company reports over 250,000 users for their app already. The app is ever-changing. Originally users had to pay to reach other users, now it is free. The distance range your post could be seen has also changed from 10 miles to 5 miles and is currently 1.5 miles.

Keep your eye on this one. I expect it is going to get worse before it gets better.

by Chris Doelle