Scrolling 2 Death

The Big Tech Gut Check is a super quick, weekly update on all things social media and Big Tech. Social Media & Big Tech highlights for this week: Can AI be blamed for 14-year-old Sewell Setzer's suicide? Big Tech Spends $51 Million on Lobbying Against Kids Safety Bills Speaker Mike Johnson and Majority Leader Scalise Hold Up Kids Online Safety Act Contact Speaker Johnson Contact Majority Leade...

Lenore Skenazy's life completely changed after allowing her child to navigate the New York City subway alone at just 9 years old. She went on to publish a book called Free-Range Kids which grew into a movement. Now, Lenore is the president of Let Grow, the national nonprofit she co-founded with three others, including Jonathan Haidt of "The Anxious Generation." Her mission is to make it easy, norm...

The average age that kids get a smartphone is nearing 10 years old. Watches are being given closer to 5. Parents primarily make these decisions for safety; to be able to track their children and get ahold of each other in case of an emergency. But do these devices actually keep children safe? Or are we hindering their autonomy and sense of independence while also potentially exposing them to the d...

The Big Tech Gut Check is a super quick, weekly update on all things social media and Big Tech. Social Media & Big Tech highlights for this week: Instagram Announces New Education Campaign to Fight Sextortion Meta Exposed Documentary by Channel 7 News Meta Confirms Layoffs Across Companies Social Media Faces Big Changes in UK Under New Ofcom Rules First UK-US Online Safety Agreement to Keep Ki...

I was super eager to catch up with long-time educator Matt Brady about screens at school. We dive deep into phone bans and also school-issued tech. Meet Matt Brady: Matt Brady is a Physics and Chemistry teacher in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Came in through lateral entry after spending 10 years writing about comic books and pop culture for various outlets. Prior to that, he was in graduate scho...

For this interview, I brought in Dawn Hawkins, CEO of the National Center on Sexual Exploitation . NCOSE is the leading organization exposing the connections between all forms of sexual exploitation, including sex trafficking, prostitution, pornography, and child sexual abuse. In addition to running NCOSE, Dawn is a mom of 5 and I loved learning about her approach to screens and her decision to ho...

The Big Tech Gut Check is a super quick, weekly update on all things social media and Big Tech. Social Media & Big Tech highlights for this week: [REPORT] Roblox is a Pedophile Hellscape for Kids 14 U.S. States Sue TikTok for Harm to Children TikTok Redacted Documents in Teen Safety Lawsuit Revealed [REPORT] CDC Warns Parents About Social Media Link to Suicide Families Sue Social Media for Har...

I checked my Instagram messages last week and saw that the incredible Andrea Brambila had reached out. She asked very simply, "How do I get involved in advocacy?"  I'm not an expert, but have learned a lot in the past 12 months through attending Congressional hearings, lobbying in D.C. and advocating on a local level at my school district and school board meetings.  Andrea led the conversation by...

Harrison Haynes was a 12-year-old, video game-loving middle school student who met a stranger on Xbox. The stranger became Harrison's "best friend," sharing intimate conversations and advice. Over the next 18 months, Harrison became the victim of "grooming," where predators establish an emotional connection with a minor under the age of consent, to lower the child's inhibitions with the objective...

The Big Tech Gut Check is a super quick, weekly update on all things social media and Big Tech. Social Media & Big Tech highlights for this week: State of New Mexico Sues Snapchat for Failing to Protect Kids [New Yorker] Has social media fueled a teen suicide crisis? U.S. Surgeon General Recommends Social Media Warning Label  (bill introduced in Congress) Roblox and Google Partner to Create a...

The internet is now, decidedly, unsafe for kids...including A.I. generated platforms. At Angel Kids AI, their mission is to use AI to flip the script; making the internet safe for kids.  I brought in Tim Estes, founder of Angel Kids AI, to educate parents about A.I., the harms, the potential and how to introduce our kids to A.I. tools safely and productively. Tim and I dig into online harms, revie...

Rick Lane was there at the beginning; when MySpace was the leader of the pack and Facebook was moving fast and breaking things. He had a front row seat to it all going wrong and is speaking out. In this eye-opening conversation, Rick describes how the initial intention of self-regulation and light government touch in the tech industry has led to the lack of accountability and failure in protecting...

I brought in CMO of Bark Technologies, Titania Jordan, to discuss the implications of Apple's iOS 18 update, focusing on its impact on child safety and parental controls. We also discuss implications of privacy and general advice related to kids and devices. This episode is sponsored by Bark Technologies. Learn about the Bark Phone Learn about the Bark App for iPhones and Androids . *Use code SCRO...

The Big Tech Gut Check is a super quick, weekly update on all things social media and Big Tech. Social Media & Big Tech highlights for this week: Snapchat Integrates Google's AI to Enhance Snapchat Chatbot Snapchat Offers Older Teens 16+ Public Sharing Snapchat Testing Simplified Version of the App States Race to Ban Phones at School Administrators Toolkit by Phone Free Schools Movement Th...

Laura Lawrence is a wealth of knowledge between her experience as a teacher, speaker, author and most importantly, a mom of 4. We had an honest conversation that covers all areas of screen time and social media. I am especially grateful to Laura for sharing a sensitive story about her son's experience with an online harm. Laura Lawrence is a 4x best-selling author, motivational speaker, mindfu...

Today's episode of Scrolling 2 Death features a vulnerable conversation with a mom in Colorado named Lori Schott. Lori tragically and suddenly lost her 17-year-old daughter to suicide in November of 2020. After Anna's death, Lori turned to her phone for answers. What she found on TikTok is every parent's worst nightmare -- a steady stream of videos targeting Anna with promotion of self...

I was honored to speak with pro football Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith about his work in raising awareness of the dangers of opioid use. Emmitt Smith teamed up with Emergent BioSolutions to break down the stigma around opioid use and accidental overdose, which continues to fuel a national epidemic impacting people from all walks of life. During Emmitt's decorated 15-year professional...

This is the worst story I've ever heard, but I'm so grateful I got to know Emily. Today we meet an incredibly kind and animal-loving teenager named Emily Popolo. Her mom describes her with a smile on her face, despite Emily's struggles with bipolar disorder and learning disabilities. Emily faced bullying that became relentless after the bullies took to social media to target her. It wa...

Let's face it. Kids are struggling and one of the main reasons is social media; the addictiveness, the inappropriate content, the cyberbullying, the constant comparison. The list of threats goes on and on. Turns out, social media platforms are not legally required to keep our kids safe or protect their mental health. This is why Senators Blackburn and Blumenthal created the Kids Online Safety...

After finding a self-harm video being promoted to my child on her school-issued device, I decided to embark on a journey of opting my child out of devices at school. And boy, has it been a journey. I chose to share my experience with parents on social media, and it turns out that parents all over the country are having the same experiences. So from there, I brought in Julie Liddell of the Ed Tech...

The Big Tech Gut Check is a super quick, weekly update on all things social media and Big Tech. Social Media & Big Tech highlights for this week: The link between social media use and suicide My journey opting out of school-issued devices 42 State Attorney Generals Demand Warning Label for Social Media ( CNN ) Support the Kids Online Safety Act ( contact your Rep here ) KOSA interviews with  A...

Are our kids digital superlearners, or did we just complete a decades-long hardware dump on an entire generation with no research to support that kids will actually benefit from over-integration of tech at school? This is what I explore in today's episode with special guest, Chris McKenna of Protect Young Eyes . We dive into the research related to the educational benefit of screens and global...

If I've learned one thing about gaming, it's that kids are not safe without additional protections. One of the tools being released to families is called GameSafe , founded by technology expert David Everitt. In this conversation, David describes his own experience with his daughter being groomed in Minecraft, which led to his new mission in life: To offer families with a tool to truly kee...

Today I'm joined by U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas to talk about keeping kids safe online. Senator Cruz is a father to two teenage girls. He is facing the same struggles as all parents related to social media and smartphones. In addition to offering advice for listeners, Senator Cruz introduces us to three important bills that can help keep our kids safe online. The Take it Down Act The Kids O...

The Big Tech Gut Check is a super quick, weekly update on all things social media and Big Tech. Social Media & Big Tech highlights for this week: Why Phones Don't Belong in School ( podcast episode here ) Meta Advertising Nudify Apps on Facebook and Instagram ( update here ) Social Media's Role in Crimes Against Kids ( with John Pizzuro ) Harrison Haynes Was Groomed And Is Speaking out...