I couldn't help but think that for many parents who use the site, it is a wasted opportunity for insight into their children's lives. Unlike (some) adults, kids have no sense of what they should or should not post. They have little conception or regard for the openness of the site, and fail to realize that does not take much for a casual observer to learn intimate details of their comings and going. 

While it is much better for kids to be careful about what they post, it is one frontier on which parents - with a little planning - have the advantage. Searching a child's room, for example, can rightly be viewed as an invasion of privacy. On Facebook, the rules are different. There they readily volunteer information, and a vigilant parent can simply lie in wait as the confessions roll in. 

The parent in the screenshot probably does that to some extent, but I think she's wasting a golden opportunity. The point is not to catch your children before they do bad things, but to gather information that can be used in a dialog with the child. I'm not suggesting that you electronically stalk your children; there are a number things wrong with that picture that I would hesitate to explain if you are unable to sense that for yourself. I think it's valid to openly send a friend request to your children and sit back. Watch their dialogs with their friends, but don't comment. Let them be. Don't allow it to appear as though your electronic vigilance is a weapon you wield against them.

When potentially troubling information surfaces, it may be tricky to broach the topic without seeming as though you were using Facebook as a tool of parental espionage, but this is where real parenting skills come in. Be straightforward about where you gained the information and sensitive about what you have learned. You may find that the channels of communication between you and your child will open, and the trust you inspire will extend beyond the internet into real life.