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Jonathan Haidt

@jonathanhaidt.bsky.social
8.4K followers 13 following 145 posts

Social psychologist at NYU-Stern, working to roll back the phone-based childhood. Please visit anxiousgeneration.com & afterbabel.com

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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 18h
Who could have seen this coming? futurism.com/artificial-i...
futurism.com
Teen Boys Are Using Meta Glasses to Terrorize Girls at High Schools and Middle Schools
Teen boys are using Meta's AI glasses to harass and bully victims -- overwhelmingly girls -- at middle schools and high schools.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Join us on Weds in NYC! We'll talk about Angela's new book, Situated — about finding the people and places that bring out your best. @92ndstreety.bsky.social www.92ny.org/event/angela...
92ny.org
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Around 22% of children and adolescents worldwide show signs of disordered eating. Early exposure to social media makes problems much more likely to occur. www.cnn.com/2026/09/25/h...
cnn.com
Giving a tween a smartphone may increase the risk of body image issues and unhealthy eating | CNN
Kids who have their own smartphones at age 12 are more likely to develop eating disorder symptoms than those who don’t, according to a new study.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Great news from Mexico! A Mexican government survey of more than 560,000 educators had revealed that 78% of respondents reported student attention issues linked to the use of screens; 90% approved of limiting access to devices during school hours.
nytimes.com
Mexico Becomes Latest Country to Restrict Phones in Schools
President Claudia Sheinbaum has sharply limited the use of cellphones and screens in schools. The measures will go into effect in November.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
"No single hour a child is glued to a screen seems catastrophic—until we step back & see the displacement of real life as a whole. Because a teenager scrolling at midnight isn't sleeping, a child watching videos isn't outside playing & a family watching TV during dinner isn’t talking to one another"
usatoday.com
Reclaiming your kid's childhood from their screens starts here | Opinion
There is a particular kind of silence parents know well: a room full of children, together but apart, each looking down at a screen.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
It’s great to see your name in a positive headline in NYT. It’s even better to know that on my right and on my left I march with millions of parents who have taken up this cause as their own. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/27/s...
nytimes.com
“Anxious Generation” Author Jonathan Haidt on the Meta Settlement
In “The Anxious Generation,” he laid out the evils of social media for kids. The landmark Meta settlement seems to agree.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
In recent years, in places like Baldwin City, KS, and Silver Spring, MD, parents have been investigated — or even arrested — for letting their children walk to the store, play in the park or ride their bicycles unsupervised. We're working to change this at Let Grow! www.nytimes.com/2026/08/11/w...
nytimes.com
Should Letting Children Play Alone Outside Be a Crime?
Some parents have been surprised to find themselves in the legal system’s cross hairs.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
As of Thursday, Meta is required to pay $942 million. That is just one state, with many other lawsuits against Meta in process. More important, Meta is required to make fundamental changes to its platforms to reduce addictive features, improve age verification and prevent child sexual exploitation.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
New by me, @raviiyer.bsky.social and Zach Rausch: Australia's social media law is changing the game, making it easier for Australian parents to parent, and for other countries to follow. Changing norms is hard, but we list 5 trends showing that Australia is on its way to success. Give it time.
time.com
What the World Should Learn from Australia’s Social Media Law
Half a year since Australia restricted social media companies from providing accounts to kids under 16, signs of success are beginning to show.
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AdyBee 🐝 @adybee.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
It amazes me how we went from our mums in the 60s telling us to come home when we got hungry or when the street lights went on , and not wanting us to be photographed (besides that school photo) …. to parents today watching their children 24/7 and posting on social media every time their kid farts 😔
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
"The worst thing was not the most extreme. It was watching a child’s face as she realised that the person who she thought was her friend wasn’t her friend; that the sex acts she’d been doing weren’t for her friend; and that there may have been other people in the room."
theguardian.com
‘Why would you put a toxic product into the hands of a young child?’: director turned activist Beeban Kidron on why big tech needs its ‘tobacco moment’
In her work as an online safety campaigner, the baroness and Bridget Jones director has seen things she can never unsee – and she’s furious at the tech overlords doing nothing to stop the abuse
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
Most parents have no idea what the typical 13yo sees on Snapchat — what's recommended to them by the algorithm, despite their stated interests. The latest on my (free) Substack — by Brooke Istook, president of Heat Initiative. www.afterbabel.com/p/snapchat-r...
afterbabel.com
What Does a 13-Year-Old See on Snapchat in a Normal Week?
Two new studies show that kids and teens frequently encounter graphic violence, sexual content, and adult strangers on the app.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 03/07/2026
One of the central arguments of "The Anxious Generation" is that we must not only limit phones in childhood, we must also restore the real-world independence, free play, responsibility, and embodied peer life that children have lost.
afterbabel.com
A Cure for Child Anxiety Hiding (and Seeking) in Plain Sight
Don’t just go phone free: Start a Play Club at your school too.
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Reposted by Jonathan Haidt
World Happiness Report @worldhappiness.report · 30/06/2026
Explore #WHR2026 Chapter 3 by @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social and Zach Rausch 👉 www.worldhappiness.report/ed/2026/soci...
worldhappiness.report
Social media is harming adolescents at a scale large enough to cause changes at the population level
The World Happiness Report is published by the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford, in partnership with Gallup, the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network and an independent ed...
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Governor Josh Shapiro @governor.pa.gov · 26/06/2026
Jon has been a leading voice in this movement — and I’m grateful for his advocacy in support of a bell-to-bell cell phone ban, which will create a healthier environment for both our teachers and our kids here in Pennsylvania.
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Governor Josh Shapiro @governor.pa.gov · 26/06/2026
@jonathanhaidt.bsky.social and I agree: It’s time for us to get cell phones out of the classroom.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
I love this — a NYC mom got 38 schools to agree to less screen time AND more recess for a week! Parents and admins see the benefits of a real, five-sensory childhood. www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2026...
chalkbeat.org
This upper Manhattan mom convinced 38 schools to ditch devices for a week-long ‘screen break’
Fed up with excessive screen time, one upper Manhattan mom took action. Over 10,000 students in District 6 will swap devices for outdoor play, read-alouds, and improv classes.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 26/06/2026
Bans on companion AI bots operate as recalls by removing unsafe products until they are designed safely. This is an important reframe — it shifts incentives so companies can compete on safety. Law Professor Gaia Bernstein’s new Brookings policy brief: gaiabernstein.substack.com/p/we-are-not...
gaiabernstein.substack.com
We Are Not Banning AI Companion Bots. We Are Recalling Them.
Why AI Companion Bots Require Public Health Regulation.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
Malaysia is enforcing its social media age-gating policy starting this month, the 3rd country to do so after Australia & Indonesia. Around 9 million Malaysian kids under 16 will no longer spend hours a day on short-form video platforms depriving them of sleep, self-esteem, and the ability to focus 🇲🇾
malaymail.com
Malaysia’s under-16 social media rule starts today: What parents need to know
Children under 16 will no longer be allowed to register social media accounts on covered platforms.Platforms must introduce age verification measures to identify underage...
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
This is a great step toward ending the uncontrolled global experiment. Bravo, UK 🇬🇧 "The debate is not whether young people should have access to social media. The debate is whether social media should have access to our children and teenagers, and when." — Ursula von der Leyen
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges in the UK on the harms of the phone-based childhood: "There can be few issues which have united clinicians so resoundingly ​in recent years as the impact that unfettered exposure to tech and devices is currently having ​on children and young people's health."
reuters.com
Social media as bad for children as smoking, British doctors say
Social media ranks alongside smoking as a danger to children, ‌senior British doctors said on Tuesday, as they urged lawmakers to tackle the harm that they say excessive screen time is causing to youn...
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
With many life skills — sports, speaking, reading — early exposure can be a predictor of greater facility later in life. Not so with digital exposure and #edtech. Thank you @andersoncooper360.bsky.social
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Luiza Jarovsky, PhD @luizajarovsky.bsky.social · 03/06/2026
As a mother, I would like to recommend @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social's new TED Talk "Why You Should be a Technoskeptic" to every parent navigating their kids' social media and AI use. Although he uses the term "technoskeptic," I find him one of the most sensible tech optimists out there. Watch:
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
New polling on Snapchat users 10-1: 1/2 encountered unsafe content or messages in the past year 1/3 reported unsafe content or messages in the past month 1/8 encountered sexually suggestive content at least weekly Add your name to hold Snap accountable: actionnetwork.org/petitions/st...
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
More evidence that social media and online video games are harming kids at an industrial scale: Across 12 developing nations, one in six had experienced "technology-facilitated child sexual exploitation and abuse (CSEA)." That's 10 million kids in one year, and that's just the sex-related harms.
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David Mair @davidmair4.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
Evergreen insight from @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social that explains a lot about the challenges of the science-policy interface. #scipol
“When we want to believe something, we ask ourselves, "Can I believe it?" Then, we search for supporting evidence, and if we find even a single piece of pseudo-evidence, we can stop thinking. We now have permission to believe. We have justification, in case anyone asks. In contrast, when we don't want to believe something, we ask ourselves, "Must I believe it?" Then we search for contrary evidence, and if we find a single reason to doubt the claim, we can dismiss it.”
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 30/05/2026
I had the honor of speaking at #TED in Vancouver last month. The most urgent message I felt I should share: We need to be #technoskeptics. We are "ultrasocial" creatures (E.O. Wilson). The technologies we are raising our kids on often encourage behaviors that go against our ultrasocial nature.
ted.com
Why you should be a techno-skeptic
Humans aren't just social — we're ultrasocial, wired like bees and ants for deep connection. So what happens when smartphones take over childhood, tablets replace textbooks and AI companies infiltrate...
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Nicholas Thompson @nxthompson.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
Sage advice from @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social in his commencement speech at NYU today. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
A year since New York State enacted @governor.ny.gov's phone-free schools policy, teachers are "astounded by how much of a shift it has been.” nypost.com/2026/05/14/l...
nypost.com
NYC teachers say phone ban in classrooms has caused ‘jaw dropping’ change in students’ attention
“I’ve been astounded by how much of a shift it has been,” one teacher told The Post.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
More than a grain of truth here, unfortunately @theonion.com
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 30/04/2026
"American public schools are awash in YouTube. ... YouTube during snack time, dismissal and indoor recess. YouTube to teach drawing to first-graders. YouTube to read a book to class. YouTube under the covers at night, watching hamster videos on school-issued Chromebooks. www.wsj.com/us-news/educ...
wsj.com
How YouTube Took Over the American Classroom
Parents find their kids captive to the video streaming site on their school-issued devices; for one, it was 13,000 YouTube videos in three months.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 23/04/2026
Join us May 5th in NYC! @92ndstreety.bsky.social www.92ny.org/event/goldie...
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Investigation reveals concerns about how children are being used as influencers in the skincare and beauty space on TikTok, raising child protection and labor exploitation questions www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
theguardian.com
‘An element of exploitation’: the world of TikTok child skincare influencers
Experts say regulation of child influencers sits in a legal grey area as children promote products on social media
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 19/04/2026
Social media companies try to fend off age limits by claiming they are a "lifeline" for kids from marginalized groups. But as trans activist Lennon Torres shows, from her own experience and from Meta's own research, the opposite is closer to the truth: www.afterbabel.com/p/dont-let-b...
afterbabel.com
Don’t Let Big Tech Hide Behind a Rainbow Flag
Lennon Torres on why social media regulation is a prerequisite for LGBTQ safety.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 18/04/2026
Grateful to TED for having me at this year's conference in Vancouver. I met with thought leaders from tech, education, and the arts. An intellectual paradise! I'll post the talk as soon as it's live.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 10/04/2026
The 7 lines of evidence that social media harms kids and teens: 1️⃣ What the victims say 2️⃣ What the witnesses say 3️⃣ What company documents and insiders reveal 4️⃣ Cross-sectional studies 5️⃣ Longitudinal studies 6️⃣ Randomized controlled trials of time reduction 7️⃣ Natural experiments
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
A sobering look at what social media is doing to young men: www.nytimes.com/2026/02/13/s...
nytimes.com
Handsome at Any Cost
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 08/04/2026
Encouraging — Gen Z is cutting back on screen time the most relevantmagazine.com/culture/tech...
relevantmagazine.com
Gen Z Is Cutting Back on Screen Time More Than Any Other Generation - RELEVANT
Gen Z grew up online. Now they’re actively choosing to unplug. A new study from Talker Research found that 63% of Gen Z intentionally disconnect from
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 31/03/2026
From the great Cal Newport: "In 2016 my main concern was helping people find enough free time for deep work. Today I think we’re rapidly losing the ability to think deeply at all." He calls for a national wellness movement arounds screens, the same way as we popularized exercise in the 60s:
nytimes.com
Opinion | There’s a Good Reason You Can’t Concentrate
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 30/03/2026
The latest social media trend: skincare for toddlers. How would they have that youthful glow if not for sheet masks and serums? www.theatlantic.com/health/2026/...
theatlantic.com
The Skin-Care Industry Is Coming for Toddlers
Millennials created the wellness economy, and now it wants their children as customers.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 27/03/2026
We had a perception of reality before that this was just inevitable: "What are you going to do? Social media is here to stay.“ Now suddenly we’re all saying, "Wait, everybody agrees this is harmful for kids. So why are we giving it to kids?” Including my thoughts:
cnn.com
1 down, 1000s to go: A landmark verdict could reshape social media | CNN Business
A first-of-its-kind decision marked a crucial moment of accountability for social media companies. It’s just the beginning.
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 25/03/2026
For the first time, the law aligns with common sense: social media companies no longer have a special exemption to harm children with impunity. Their shield is gone. They will be treated like any industry that knowingly harms children. History will judge them as harshly as the tobacco industry.
nytimes.com
Meta and YouTube Found Negligent in Landmark Social Media Addiction Case
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 21/03/2026
Honored to have a chapter in this year's World Happiness Report about the population-scale harms of social media. If you want a full rundown of the evidence that social media is harming teen mental health, I lay out 7 lines of evidence here. www.worldhappiness.report/ed/2026/soci...
worldhappiness.report
Social media is harming adolescents at a scale large enough to cause changes at the population level
The World Happiness Report is published by the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford, in partnership with Gallup, the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network and an independent ed...
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
Join us at Columbia University in NYC on 3/31 for a live podcast recording with Gen Z’er Ava Smithing and a showcase of groups on the front lines of digital rights and online safety. Parents, bring your teenage kids, this one’s for them! Free registration:
eventbrite.com
Left to Their Own Devices: A Conversation with Jonathan Haidt
What does it take to build a digital world that actually serves the people in it?
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 11/03/2026
Parents who've lost children to social media harms (sextortion, drugs sold on IG/Snap, eating disorders) are joining arms with parents who've lost children to AI chat bots. The saddest Venn diagram of compounding harms:
nytimes.com
A.I. Incites a New Wave of Grieving Parents Fighting for Online Safety
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
"A relationship rarely dies from one catastrophic betrayal, and most of the couples I see aren’t destroyed by a single event. They erode through tiny departures that are too frequent to ignore, in which one partner’s attention leaves the room while their body is still there." Latest on our Substack:
afterbabel.com
Your Marriage Has a Third
What The Phone-Based Adulthood is Doing to Love and Sex
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
Still more evidence that #edtech harmed American education: Across states, the year that the state imposed mandates requiring computers/tablets is the year that test scores stopped rising and in most cases started falling. By Jared Cooney Hovarth:
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
It's a big day for us at the Anxious Generation movement — we launched the Childhood Index, a ranking of US states on how well their technology laws and policies support healthy, flourishing childhoods, online and offline. Where does your state rank? Thank you @axios.com for the exclusive story!
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 03/03/2026
Join us on March 31st in NYC! www.eventbrite.com/e/left-to-th...
eventbrite.com
Left to Their Own Devices: A Conversation with Jonathan Haidt
What does it take to build a digital world that actually serves the people in it?
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Jonathan Haidt @jonathanhaidt.bsky.social · 01/03/2026
Major new report on mental health (Sapien Labs). Data from 85 countries: 1) In ALL countries examined, young people have worse mental health than older generations. 2) A younger age of first smartphone ownership is associated with increased suicidal thoughts & other problems in adulthood.
sapienlabs.org
Global Mind Project | 2025 Report | Sapien Labs
A view of the mind health of the Internet-enabled world and the factors that drive it.
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