It’s certainly a step in the right direction but at the same time, why does the American public need to be treated like toddlers? Same goes for fast food, opioid crisis, soft drinks and many more. Why is it that the only society in the world which consumes garbage in all forms and also needs to be reminded like kids what is right and what is wrong? I would point the rhetorical finger to the ridiculous public education in this country, but I am sure it’s only the tip of the iceberg.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/17/opinion/social-media-health-warning.html

 #Digital Wellness 📱🧘 
 #ScholER

Opinion | Surgeon General: Why I’m Calling for a Warning Label on Social Media Platforms

Digital Wellness 📱🧘

ScholER

It’s certainly a step in the right direction but at the same time, why does the American public need to be treated like toddlers? Same goes for fast food, opioid crisis, soft drinks and many more. Why is it that the only society in the world which consumes garbage in all forms and also needs to be reminded like kids what is right and what is wrong? I would point the rhetorical finger to the ridiculous public education in this country, but I am sure it’s only the tip of the iceberg.  https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/17/opinion/social-media-health-warning.html   #Digital Wellness 📱🧘   #ScholER

Bobby

Posts encouraging eating disorders were recommended to users on X, with one community amassing 173,000 followers.  #Digital Wellness 📱🧘  

https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/internet/x-became-hub-groups-encouraging-eating-disorders-rcna167609?ref=platformer.news

Posts encouraging eating disorders were recommended to users on X, with one community amassing 173,000 followers.  #Digital Wellness 📱🧘    https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/internet/x-became-hub-groups-encouraging-eating-disorders-rcna167609?ref=platformer.news

X is just the latest platform to struggle with user groups creating eating disorder content, where teens can fall down a rabbit hole that promotes extreme thinness.

Posts encouraging eating disorders were recommended to X users

Nate

Passin’ notes… is back. The US’s No. 2 school district (Los Angeles) just banned smartphones and social media, and the biggest district (NYC) said it’s going to do the same. CA and NY want to pass statewide bans, similar to those in Indiana and Florida. To make the measures stick, many districts put teens’ phones in lockers and pouches. Anti-phone actions follow a growing wave of concern over teens’ mental health: the surgeon general’s called for social-media warning labels as social cos (Meta, TikTok, X) go to court to answer for their platforms’ negative effects.

They should go further. Put warning labels on so-called smart phones. These devices are ruining children and adults alike. We have all been test rats for these pernicious devices for a dozen years. The results are not good.

I've seen children well under five who scream to high heaven when they are deprived of their phones even momentarily. It's worse than I could imagine any narcotic drug on them

They should go further. Put warning labels on so-called smart phones. These devices are ruining children and adults alike. We have all been test rats for these pernicious devices for a dozen years. The results are not good.  I've seen children well under five who scream to high heaven when they are deprived of their phones even momentarily. It's worse than I could imagine any narcotic drug on them

Sam Mendoza

We should also acknowledge that adults are addicted, too, leading to the massive polarization that is threatening to break our country in half.

The problem isn’t so much social media itself, it’s the *algorithm* — the AI that is “optimized for engagement.” Anything that keeps you scrolling is good. Anything that causes you to take a break or engage less is bad. What leads to engagement? Polarization, rage, shock, fear, extreme opinions, porn. The AI doesn’t know what it’s feeding you, it doesn’t have opinions or emotions, it doesn’t care about your feelings or your well-being. It just measures how hooked you are and feeds you more of the stuff that keeps you scrolling. The result — the “plug-in drug“ — no less addictive than the kind you ingest, and way more insidious.

We should also acknowledge that adults are addicted, too, leading to the massive polarization that is threatening to break our country in half.  The problem isn’t so much social media itself, it’s the *algorithm* — the AI that is “optimized for engagement.” Anything that keeps you scrolling is good. Anything that causes you to take a break or engage less is bad. What leads to engagement? Polarization, rage, shock, fear, extreme opinions, porn. The AI doesn’t know what it’s feeding you, it doesn’t have opinions or emotions, it doesn’t care about your feelings or your well-being. It just measures how hooked you are and feeds you more of the stuff that keeps you scrolling. The result — the “plug-in drug“ — no less addictive than the kind you ingest, and way more insidious.

Jerome Cody

i don't agree with it, but here's a counterpoint
US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy is wrong about social media warning labels, this author argues.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-surgeon-general-is-wrong-social-media-doesnt-need-warning-labels?ref=platformer.news

i don't agree with it, but here's a counterpoint US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy is wrong about social media warning labels, this author argues.  https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-surgeon-general-is-wrong-social-media-doesnt-need-warning-labels?ref=platformer.news

Surgeon General Dr. Vivek H. Murthy is wrong about the harmful effects of social media on kids—but why let facts get in the way of a fabricated moral panic?

Bobby

A group of likeminded people in Digital Wellness 📱🧘 are talking about this.