The U.S. Secret Service is investigating a tweet from a high school girl that may be considered threatening toward the president. Alyssa Douglas of Clarksville, Ohio, about 40 miles northeast of here, sent a tweet Thursday night: "Someone needs to assassinate Obama … like ASAP." Clinton-Massie Local School District officials have had a meeting with Douglas and her parents. Bloggers and Twitter users followed the incident Friday with a discussion of hate speech. One Twitter user even claimed to point out the 16-year-old to the FBI and CIA, agencies that do not use those handles. The Secret Service office here said it will report its findings to the U.S. Attorney's Office for Southern District of Ohio. It is possible that the tweet will not be determined a legitimate threat to the president's well being. "I see it as emphasizing the need for more media literacy and media education," Jeffrey Blevins, head of the University of Cincinnati's Department of Journalism and an expert in new media, said of the incident. "These things are so readily available to young people; they don't fully understand the consequences of what they say. It's not just a snide comment to a couple of their friends where the friends can read that remark in context. Instead, that comment goes out to the entire Twitter universe, and you lose control of it. "That concept is very difficult for young people -- and even some adults -- to understand," he said. Read more: http://www.freep.com/article/201209...odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGELMAOaAlyssa
