Here's some data and some anecdotal evidence. First the data: A recent survey of teens found that "the world's largest social network has been replaced by Twitter as US teenagers' favorite social platform," Internet research firm Statista.com reported, citing research by investment bank Piper Jaffray. When asked what their favorite social media service was, 26% said Twitter, while Facebook and … [Read more...] about Teens on what’s trending in teens’ digital media
Archives for October 2013
Perspectives, data on little kids’ media use
Research findings characterized negatively in the US as "the digitization of young childhood" could be seen as a sign of growth and prosperity in countries where the Internet is mostly mobile. Even in the US, the growth of young children's use of cellphones and tablets could be saying as much about American families' shift away from computers to the mobile platform as it does about early … [Read more...] about Perspectives, data on little kids’ media use
Neutralize the ‘negativity bias’ against kids’ Net use
This post is not about technology. It's about how we (humankind) have been wiring our brains to think about technology. We have quite a hole to climb out of. Not only are our brains already "wired to scout for the bad stuff," the Huffington Post reports, referring to what neuropsychologist and author Rick Hanson calls our "negativity bias." We've been reinforcing that bias with at least 15 years … [Read more...] about Neutralize the ‘negativity bias’ against kids’ Net use
New parental controls for Chromebooks
Just in time for parents' holiday shopping, Google announced its new "Supervised Users" tool for Chromebooks. You know about Chromebooks, right? They're a very viable alternative to tablets that are just as (in some cases more) low-cost and offer a more laptop-like experience, and this tool makes them an even more viable option for families. [As their name suggests, the Chrome browser is their … [Read more...] about New parental controls for Chromebooks
To grasp social media’s effects, we need a grasp on social media!
Because more than two-thirds (67%) of the US's adult Net users now use Facebook,* you'd think that it's common knowledge that Facebook really can't be described as a single activity for one person, much less a single activity for everybody who uses it. You'd think that we'd take headlines that make generalizations about people's Facebook use with a grain of salt (especially those written back when … [Read more...] about To grasp social media’s effects, we need a grasp on social media!