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: 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...

Tens of thousands of schools are failing to reach the same primary goal...to produce happy and productive citizens. Phones at school is the roadblock, yet schools continue to struggle with implementing and enforcing phone restrictions. So, what's the answer? Kim Whitman (along with co-founders Mileva Repasky and Sabine Polak) created the Phone Free Schools Movement to provide youth the freedom...

Thank you to John Pizzuro for joining me to discuss crimes against kids. John is the CEO and co-founder of Raven , a 501(c)4 non-profit lobbying firm comprised of subject matter experts and retired law enforcement focused on legislative and policy solutions for child trafficking and child exploitation. He highlights the scale and challenge of online crimes, the issue of ineffective age-gating, and...

When former-Facebook employee David Erb realized that Facebook's "People You May Know" feature was connecting millions of pedophiles with tens of millions of children, he told senior Facebook executives right away. The response gave David the shock of his life. Not only did Meta refuse to help these children, they announced end-to-end encryption so that the messages were hidden. This...

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: Telegram CEO Arrested for Enabling Child Sexual Abuse ( among other charges ) TikTok Must Face Lawsuit Over 10-year-old Girl's Death ( court ruling ) New Study Shows TikTok Psychologically Manipulates Users in Favor of China ( study ) TikTok Chil...

The conversation is all about the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) and its positive implications for our kids. After receiving many comments about KOSA being a "censorship bill" and finding similar articles with a quick Google search, I realized that we need to face this argument head on. I brought in legislative expert Alix Fraser to respond to the headlines and give us the real deal on KO...

Parents constantly ask, "Is [INSERT APP] safe for my kids?" I brought in Titania Jordan to give our honest reviews of 10 of the most popular apps for kids. Today we cover: Spotify, Snapchat, Capcut, Candy Crush, Discord, Roblox/Minecraft/Fortnite, Whatsapp, YouTube, Telegram and ChatGPT. Thank you to Titania and Bark Technologies for putting together exhaustive app reviews for parents. I...

Kids are getting harmed by social media. Social media companies put profits over people. Legislation to protect kids online has not passed since 1998. It is way passed time get force Big Tech to protect kids. The answer is the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA). Big Tech is working hard to lobby against KOSA and convince us that it is a censorship bill (it is not). In this conversation with legislative...

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: What Snapchat Isn’t Telling You? The Dark Side of Snapchat ( article here ) New Research Reveals Communicating Online with Friends Brings Australians Happiness ( full report ) Stack of TikTok Lawsuits Grows Higher ( report here ) Schools All Over the...

Welcome to Teachers Talk, a series on Scrolling 2 Death featuring candid discussions with teachers. Parents are going to get the real deal on what's happening with screens at school, how tech is affecting students' learning and teachers' jobs. Today's episode features former middle and high school French teacher, Kathleen Barlow. Kathleen discusses the challenges of screens in scho...

Even smart kids make bad decisions; decisions that can take their life. This was the case for Judy's son, Erik, who died in 2010 from the choking game. Devastatingly, this trend has since exploded due to social media algorithms which prioritize harmful content into childrens' feeds. In this vulnerable and educational conversation, Judy tells Erik's story and guides parents on how to pr...

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: CCDH Releases Report Showing That Instagram is Failing Women ( full report ) What Happened When 8 Teenagers Went Without Smartphones for 1 Month ( full story ) New Study by JAMA Found That Tablet Use in Early Childhood Leads to Emotional Disregulatio...

If your child has a phone, they could be accessing a deadly anonymous app. Apps like NGL and others are built for secrecy and drama. Our kids should stay far away. Today you'll learn all about the danger that anonymous apps pose to our kids through the devastating story of Carson Bride, a teenager who fell victim to vicious cyberbullying through an anonymous app connected to Snapchat. Carson&#...

In this conversation, I interview author, mom and entrepreneur Jenna Lee Dillon to discuss children's screen time; the benefits, the dangers and the importance of a proactive approach to screens. Jenna Lee authored an incredible book called Look Up! A Wild & Screen Freed Roadmap to Enjoying Travel with Kids. This book dives into Jenna Lee's experiences and lessons embarking on 65 fligh...