Posts Tagged → social media

Kids and Social Media

It seems the world is waking up to the dangers of social media and minors, particularly algorithm-based social media. It is engineered to keep their attention, often to their detriment. The science has been heading this way for some time, but I feel like the tipping point was the recent release of The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt.

I talk to many educators in the MacSparky audience, and it seems all of them have read this book and are believers. California has passed a ban on using cell phones in schools. Australia is now considering banning social media used by kids outright. And it feels to me like things are just getting rolling.

The solution to this problem isn’t simply regulation, though. I think it’s going to require participation by all the major players. Governments need to set rules to put some limitations on the social media companies. There’s no way for-profit companies will put reasonable constraints on themselves.

I also think the hardware and platform owners need to play a role. One of the big challenges with regulation of social media and minors is figuring out whether the person signing up for the account is an actual minor. Setting a key or user age at the hardware level would make that much easier.

And most importantly, parents need to be involved. I’ve been talking to parents in my orbit and the reaction varies. Some people take it very seriously, and others don’t. The tipping point for me was the suicide rate among girls aged 10–14 skyrocketed 131% since the arrival of social media.

Finally, the 800-pound gorilla on the couch is that adults have a similar problem with social media, which none of this movement addresses.

What I’m Doing Now

Months ago, I stumbled into Derek Sivers’ What Am I Doing Now page. The idea was to have a regularly updated page on his website explaining what you’re doing now and writing it as you would when catching up with an old friend. It’s a great way to be social without using social media, and it’s also a great backup when you tell people you can’t do the thing they want you to do. I liked it so much that I made my own. I plan to update it regularly. Enjoy.

The Growing Tide Against Social Media

Have you noticed folks are increasingly skeptical about social media lately? Lawmakers are starting to regulate it. Scientists are increasingly vocal about its dangers. I also see this skepticism in friends and family. One of my daughters is a high school teacher, and it only took her a few days of teaching to declare that the “biggest problem is TikTok. “ Her kids were addicted, and I don’t use that term lightly. Some could not stop watching videos during class until she took away their phones.

Just yesterday, I was listening to a saxophone podcast (yes, a saxophone podcast) where the guest explained that young musicians couldn’t find their own voice, because they are constantly comparing themselves to videos they see on TikTok instead of exploring their own art.

If you look for it, you see constant evidence of people rebelling against social media. I spoke to some teens about this subject, and one told me that she deleted all the social media apps from her phone because, in her words, “I just couldn’t resist. “ If only everyone had the self-awareness of that young woman!

Now that science has had a few years to study social media and its impact on humans, particularly younger humans, it’s clear there are negative consequences. I’d argue that these consequences equally apply to older humans if they’re not careful.

This increasing groundswell against social media is a comfort. I never quite got the swing of social media. I like making stuff for the Internet. I like putting my ideas out there and seeing what happens when they crash into other people. But I never found social media to be very useful for that. I’m not witty or clever enough for social media. I’m more long-form than short-form, so social media never really got hold of me.

Cal Newport was one of the early ones talking about the dangers of social media. His recent New Yorker article explains that he’s not as alone in these thoughts these days as he used to be. That’s a good thing.

My occasional rants against social media may seem off-brand for a guy who pays for his shoes talking about technology. But when you think about it further, my thoughts are entirely consistent. Specifically, my goal with my content is to teach people how to use technology to pursue their best lives. Technology can help if used wisely. Social media works against that goal. If, as a society, we’re starting to think about ways to put some constraints on social media, sign me up.