“Wouldn’t it be interesting to do a piece on the acronyms that teens are using across the Internet, especially on social media and apps, to help parents understand what, in fact, their kids are talking about?” I thought.
Photos: #Being13 in the social media age
"I like made this google document on all my rules and requirements on how to take a selfie. I take a lot of pictures, but don't judge, I take like 100 usually, or like 150, maybe 200 sometimes if I really can't get a right one.
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Courtesy Catherine
Photos: #Being13 in the social media age
I don't like dealing with things face to face because it's really easy to hide behind your phone and on face to face, like you have to deal with the other person."
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Courtesy Emmy
Photos: #Being13 in the social media age
A lot of people follow me that I do not know. There's actually a lot of people who I have no idea who they are but I just let them follow me because the more the merrier."
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Courtesy Gabby
Photos: #Being13 in the social media age
"I would rather not eat for a week than get my phone taken away. It's really bad."
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Courtesy Gia
Photos: #Being13 in the social media age
They made up a fake account and scrolled through every single one of her photos and commented something rude. No human should be able to say such rude things to someone, especially behind a screen where they're being cowards
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Courtesy Jay
Photos: #Being13 in the social media age
"I definitely feel pressure to look perfect on Instagram. What goes through my mind as I'm posting a picture about myself is - I'm thinking, ˜What will people think of this? Are they going to approve? Are they going to think I'm ugly, are they going to think I'm pretty? I'm thinking all these things and I'm comparing myself to others."
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Courtesy Morgan
Photos: #Being13 in the social media age
"The most times I check it (my phone) in a day? I lose track. It's just a need. Like I need to."
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Courtesy Selam
Photos: #Being13 in the social media age
Even though I was at school, I would still check my phone because I mean, people post things at school and stuff, so you still always worry."
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Courtesy Zack
I consulted existing lists of Internet acronyms and talked with Internet safety experts. It seemed fine – until the story published and I received a wildly critical response on social media, often with language that I can’t include here.
My Twitter feed blew up with people saying I didn’t know what I was talking about and that teens weren’t using most of the acronyms on my list.
Here’s why I’m sorry: For that story, I never consulted with the true experts – teens, themselves.
I’m thankful to have a chance for a re-do, and this time I know we’ll get it right because our list comes straight from the social media posts of 13-year-olds around the country.
As part of a two-year investigation, #Being13: Inside the Secret World of Teens, Anderson Cooper and his “AC360°” team connected with 200 eighth-graders at eight different schools around the United States. They, along with their parents and schools, gave CNN and two child-development experts permission to review what they were posting on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook over a six-month period.
Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
He went from being 13 to hosting 360.
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Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
Anderson Cooper
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Jeremy Freeman/CNN
Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
He's bound for the University of Miami before landing at CNN.
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Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
Brian Todd
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CNN
Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
She spent years helping John Walsh help catch some of "America's Most Wanted."
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Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
Alisyn Camerota
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JEREMY FREEMAN/CNN
Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
He went from playing the trumpet to playing "Jeopardy" ... and winning.
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Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
John Berman
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CNN
Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
She went from junior high to CNN's senior political correspondent.
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Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
Brianna Keilar
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CNN
Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
She's not done climbing. She will go on to climb Mount Kilimanjaro.
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Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
Brooke Baldwin
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CNN
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This Louisiana native never lost his skateboarding skills.
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Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
Don Lemon
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CNN
Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
Don't let the hair throw you off. He becomes a doctor with a list of very famous patients.
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Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
Dr. Drew Pinsky
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CNN
Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
Some kids dream of becoming the President. This one became the president of CNN.
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Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
Jeff Zucker
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CNN
Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
He helped Bill Clinton win the 1992 presidential election.
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Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
Paul Begala
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CNN
Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
He will go on to pull double duty as a CNN anchor and field reporter.
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Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
Victor Blackwell
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Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
She launched her TV career in Canada before helping launch "New Day" on CNN.
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Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
Michaela Pereira
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Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
She is not only a CNN political commentator, but she was also a consultant for HBO's "The Newsroom."
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Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
S.E. Cupp
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JEREMY FREEMAN/CNN
Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
He would grow up to become a lawyer with a client list that includes Michael Jackson, Chris Brown and Sean "Diddy" Combs.
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Photos: Name the CNN talent from their junior high school photo
Mark Geragos
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Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images North America/Getty Images
So what better way to know what acronyms and other shorthand teens, or in this case, 13-year-olds, use on social media than to scan their posts? Here are some of the more popular acronyms and sayings, from the innocent to the racy.
1. OOTD - Outfit of the day
2. KOTD - Kicks of the day – Typically refers to sneakers
3. HMU - Hit me up – Usually asking for someone’s Snapchat username, a phone number to text or for a direct message
4. Smash - I would have sex with you – A girl might post a provocative picture and a boy might write “smash.”
5. Cook session - When one or several teens gang up on another kid on social media
6. TBH - To be honest – A teen might post a picture of himself or herself and ask for a TBH, usually looking for positive responses.
7. TBR - To be rude – While TBH often leads to positive responses, TBR is usually followed by a negative response.
8. OOMF - One of my followers – A secretive way to talk about one of their followers without saying their name, such as “OOMF was so hot today.”
9. BAE - Baby – affectionate term for someone’s girlfriend, boyfriend etc.
10. WCW - Woman Crush Wednesday – A girl will post a picture of another girl she thinks is pretty, while guys will post pictures of girls they think are hot.
11. MCM - Man Crush Monday – Similar to Woman Crush Wednesday, but featuring pictures of men
12. BMS - Broke my scale – A way to say they like the way someone looks
13. RDH - Rate date hate – As in “rate me, would you date me, do you hate me?” A typical response might be “rate 10 date yes hate no” or “10/y/n.”
14. IDK - I don’t know
15. RN - Right now
16. KIK - Another social media app, Kik, that they want to communicate on
17. FML - F*** my life
18. AF - As f*** – A teen might tweet “mad af” or “you seem chill af.”
19. LMAO - Laughing my ass off
20. S/O or SO - Shout out
21. ILYSM - I like you so much or I love you so much
22. CWD - Comment when done – Similar to TBH, urging others to comment on their photo of whatever they’re posting
23. LOL - Laugh out loud – Yes, you’ll still find teens using LOL and OMG.
