Our Kids and Social Media Addiction

Did anyone see the CNN Special #Being Thirteen? It was a piece done on the issues that our children are facing on social media. They talked about kids facing social devastation if they post just one bad selfie. Some kids were checking their social media up to 200 times a day and 100 times was quite typical. Kids personas would change dramatically when they were online. Most admitted to participating in bullying when online in order to be cool. And the stress that the kids had was very unhealthy in my opinion.

While the report was not surprising it was still quite disturbing. It can be seen right here:

http://www.cnn.com/specials/us/being13

We need a flip-phone revolution started by parents in this country. Pull the smartphone and let your teens go back to simple talking and texting. If your teen starts catching crap for it, they can use the excuse that their A-hole parents won't let them have a smartphone. After a while they will likely be relieved that they have an excuse to avoid the BS. We did it a couple months ago.

jeffhandy said:
Did anyone see the CNN Special #Being Thirteen? It was a piece done on the issues that our children are facing on social media. They talked about kids facing social devastation if they post just one bad selfie. Some kids were checking their social media up to 200 times a day and 100 times was quite typical. Kids personas would change dramatically when they were online. Most admitted to participating in bullying when online in order to be cool. And the stress that the kids had was very unhealthy in my opinion.

While the report was not surprising it was still quite disturbing. It can be seen right here:
http://www.cnn.com/specials/us/being13
We need a flip-phone revolution started by parents in this country. Pull the smartphone and let your teens go back to simple talking and texting. If your teen starts catching crap for it, they can use the excuse that their A-hole parents won't let them have a smartphone. After a while they will likely be relieved that they have an excuse to avoid the BS. We did it a couple months ago.

I saw this on my Facebook feed but didn't have time to read it.

It's not just kids who are addicted to their smart phone. I frequently see grown-ups walking dogs, crossing busy intersections, driving cars, etc. while glued to their smart phone, oblivious to their surroundings. Smart phones have evolved into an important communication and research tool that can be used in many ways to improve our lives but we all have to learn to use them safely and in moderation.

I think the genie is out of the bottle (and I agree, both adults and kids). There's no going back to flip phones. While I agree it's many kids, it's not all. So what makes the difference? Being busy in other endeavors? Having parents who aren't addicted and/or who enforce limits? Being shy socially and risk-adverse? I'm not sure. But I do see a ton of teens doing great stuff and so I guess I think there's hope.

until smartphones, childhood was like paradise