Activism

"Snap is …. a hub for these drug dealers" ~ Amy Neville

Todd and Mia Minor are parents who have become a powerful force in awareness building and education of online challenges. The Minor's lives changed forever when Matthew, their 12-year-old son, died accidentally through participation in a social media challenge known as the Choking Challenge. In this episode, learn about online challenges and how they are being perceived by kids. Listen now!

When I get questions about how today's youth is being affected by pornography, I have a few resources I like to recommend. At the very top of this list is Culture Reframed. Formed in 2015, Culture Reframed is the premier science-based global organization of scholars, professionals, and activists addressing the harms of pornography to youth. Today we get to learn about the latest free resource in their curriculum: Porn Critical Sex Education. Listen today!

Recognizing that being on social media felt like an unwanted requirement for him to socialize as a teen and young adult, Sean Killingsworth created: Reconnect Movement. Looking to combat what Killingsworth calls the “social wasteland” created by a generation’s overuse of tech, ReConnect Movement builds in-person communities to detox from distractions, make friends, and just hang out. Reconnect Movement serves to provide offline balance for those who don't want to be on social media.

On March 28th of this year, Children and Screens, Institute of Digital Media and Child Development announced the release of a landmark report unveiling the significant impacts of the UK's Age Appropriate Design Code (AADC) on digital platforms. The Institute's review identified an unprecedented wave of 91 changes made across leading social media and digital platforms. Find out what they are when you listen to this episode Listen now!

After her oldest son dropped out of college due to his video game addiction, Melanie Hempe put her nursing degree to good use and founded Screen Strong,@bescreenstrong a nonprofit that empowers families to prevent screen problems and reclaim their kids from toxic screens. Listen to this episode and learn how your family can stop fighting over screens, kids can gain more life skills and everyone can benefit!

The mission of the Phone-Free Schools Movement @phonefreeschools is to provide youth the freedom to excel academically and develop socially without the distractions, pressures, and harms of phones and social media during the school day. In this episode meet and listen to all 3 founding members: Kim Whitman, Sabine Polak, and Mileva Repasky recount personal experiences with phones in schools and reasons why a “no phone bell to bell” policy in schools is needed.

Lenore Skenazy is no stranger to doing hard things and sitting in the discomfort of letting your child explore their independence. In 2008 she wrote an article about allowing her 9 year old son to ride a New York City subway all the way home, by himself. The backlash from the public and media was swift…to say the least. Lenore says our kids are smarter, safer, and stronger than our culture gives them credit for and encourages us to get our kids outside, offline and let them grow.

KOSA (Kids Online Safety Act) provides families with the tools, safeguards, and transparency they need to protect against threats to children’s health and well-being online. The legislation would require social media platforms put the interests of children first by requiring these platforms to make safety the default. Contact your Senators to urge Senate Majority Leader Schumer to bring KOSA (The Kids Online Safety Act) to the floor for a vote. Do it today!

Heed the Children is committed to the protection of children from destructive effects of smartphones and social media and the effects that they're having on kids’ mental and physical health. This petite powerhouse has passion, dedication and a blueprint for you to set up your own parent group in your community! Learn all about it in this episode.

Since 2013, the Children and Screens Institute @childrenandscreens has been a leading curator of experts in the field of digital media and children's health. This week, I got to talk to the executive director: Kris Perry. I asked Kris questions like: - Is digital media enhancing or impairing children's abilities to live happy, healthy, productive lives? -What does research show regarding the effects of screen use on children's cognitive development or social emotional development? -What can parents do to help enact legislation enforcing guardrails on tech platforms? She had insightful, amazing answers. If you use technology, if you have any interaction with children, if you are interested in the effects of digital media, you need to hear this episode!

As the current National Advisor for Health Education and Media Literacy at Media Literacy Now @medialiteracynow, Tamara Sobel is deeply committed to helping parents and schools gain healthy screen habits. The founder of the Girls Women and Media Project, she led one of the first organizations focused on activism and education to raise awareness and improve images of girls and women in the media. She's a certified sexuality educator and a regular columnist for Psychology Today. ( Maybe you've already read some of her work!) Our conversation covers a variety of topics surrounding Media Literacy and a great healthy screen habit.

As the source behind the Wall Street Journal's Facebook Files, Frances Haugen exposed Facebook's awareness, complicity, radicalization in political violence around the world, plus their disregard to users' mental health. Her new book: The Power Of One: How I Found the Strength to Tell the Truth and Why I Blew the Whistle on Facebook, (available in our Amazon Marketplace) tells the backstory and more. I had the opportunity to speak with Frances. She was incredibly generous with her time…so generous that I did something I never have before – that is: create a 2 part episode. Enjoy listening to Part 2 of this fabulous conversation as Frances Haugen talks about ways we can fix social media….not kill it.

The Facebook Whistleblower, Frances Haugen deserves a seat in the High Court of Heroes in the “Do The Right Thing” Justice League ( I just made that up but it should absolutely be a thing.). A data scientist, Harvard graduate, expert of algorithmic product management and an Iowan daughter of two professors, Frances truly moved the needle for humanity when she recognized wrongdoing and stood up for the world. The source behind the Wall Street Journal's, Facebook Files, Frances exposed Facebook's awareness, complicity, radicalization in political violence around the world, plus their disregard to users' mental health. Her new book: The Power Of One: How I Found the Strength to Tell the Truth and Why I Blew the Whistle on Facebook, (available in our Amazon Marketplace) tells the backstory and more. When I had the opportunity to speak with Frances she was incredibly generous with her time…so generous that I am going to do something I never have before – that is: break this episode into 2 parts.

Emma Lembke is a young adult who is the founder of the Log Off Movement, an activist for better legislation for online protections, and a student at Washington University in St Louis. Emma is passionate about leaning into the creativity and resourcefulness of other young people who are interested in choosing their best path forward with technology. Her intergenerational work has created space for dialogue between lawmakers and youth for policy changes that favor protection over profit. Her tips on managing screen time and involving teens to take control of their screen use will help all families.

Madi is an 18 year old girl who is passionately spreading awareness about LDS women struggling with pornography. As a young woman growing up, developing a bad habit of porn consumption, and living as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, also known as LDS, Madi felt shame and loneliness. Part of her healing came through consulting members of her faith. She hopes to help others find their own path forward and develop new, healthy screen habits. In this episode we talk about her path to recovery, various approaches to stop viewing porn, as well as an on-campus organization seeking to help others connect.

LiveMore ScreenLess is a Minnesota-based organization that uses best practices from education, public health, and positive youth development to engage with family, schools, and organizations to promote balanced, intentional, and effective use of technology. That is the total trifecta! the best of all possible uses of technology! Listen to this episode as I talk to the co-founders Maree Hampton and KK Myers. They are dynamic women who are changing the way Minnesota does tech in schools.