Research + News

TikTok Stars Are Preparing To Take Over The Internet

Less than a year after its U.S. launch, the platform is poised to dominate the American social-media landscape and upend the creator ecosystem. Read the article here.

Parents Hire Coaches To Help Limit Their Kids’ Screen Time

For a fee as high as $200, so-called “screen time consultants” are helping parents figure out how to get their kids off of their devices. View the video from Good Morning America here.

These Are The Social Media Platforms Teens Are Ditching In 2019

Teenagers and young adults are moving away from Facebook in favor of platforms like YouTube and Snapchat, a new survey conducted by Business Insider found. Read the article here.

Six Dangers To Teach Your Kids About Porn

Two forces are at work to make avoiding porn next to impossible. Read the full article from Harvest USA here.

Teens Exchange Nude Selfies; Now, One Must Register As A Sex Offender

Colorado’s Supreme Court upheld a ruling last week that required a juvenile boy to register as a sex offender after sexting and trading erotic pictures with two girls roughly his age, a split decision that highlights states’ recent struggles with applying laws passed in a less tech-heavy age. Read the article here.

Study Finds Sexting May Be A Healthy Part Of Growing Up?!?

University of Texas Medical Branch researchers say that when older teens are sexting – sharing sexually explicit pictures and videos over mobile phones – it may simply be a healthy part of growing up. Read the full article here.

At Your Wits’ End With A Screen-Obsessed Kid?

Technology overuse ranked as the No. 1 fear of parents of teenagers in a national survey last year. Read this story from NPR’s Life Kit series here.

Neuroscience Explains Why Instagram Is So Bad For Teen Girls

Thanks to ongoing brain development and increased sensitivity to dopamine (a neurotransmitter associated with motivation, pleasure and reward), teenagers are more likely to crave reward-based experiences. And, because their prefrontal cortex (the area associated with understanding, evaluation and decision-making) is still developing, social interactions greatly shape impulse control and critical thinking.

Read the rest of the article here.

93% Of Kids Enjoy Break From Smartphones While Attending Sleep-Away Camp

Adolescents overwhelmingly prefer their digital detox during their time at sleep-away camp. Read the article here.

TikTok Safety Tips

The wild-and-wacky short videos of TikTok continue to gain popularity among kids, adults, and even celebrities. Check out some easy tips from Common Sense Media to help you manage your kid’s Tik Tok experience by clicking here.

Game On: Video Games Are A Staple Among Millennials’ Media Diets

Millennials were the first generation to grow up with widespread access to video games, and they’re just as active gamers as they were when they were growing up—if not more so. Read the research here.

Parents’ Ultimate Guide to Esports

Now that esports is in high schools across the country, your teen gamer can justify gaming as “training” — and maybe even win a college scholarship. Read the blog from Common Sense Media here.

New Yolo Anonymous Q&A App Attracts Millions Of Teenage Users, Has Parents Wary

YOLO is the hottest app out according to the app store, but more people are realizing the negative aspects of the anonymous question and answer app. Read the article here.

Youth Sexting Tied To Sexual Behavior, Mental Health Risks

But whether there’s a causal link, and in which direction, remains uncertain. Read the article here.

When Should Kids Get Smartphones? (Survey)

With the power of the Internet at their fingertips, parents have to consider an important question: “When should kids get  smartphones?” Read the survey results here.

Teens Take TikTok To The Top

TikTok has been downloaded more than a billion times around the world, with more downloads last year than any other non-game app besides WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and Facebook. And teens are driving much of its popularity and success. Read the article here.

Boomerang Nude GIFs Are The Latest Sexting Trend

People are sending Boomeranged solicited nudes to one another. Read the article here.

Activist Campaigns Have Unforeseen Negative Impact On Teens

New research suggests such campaigns can harm vulnerable populations in ways not yet fully understood. Read the article here.

Many Teens Sleep With Their Phones, Survey Finds – Just Like Their Parents

Four out of five teenagers with mobile devices keep them in their rooms overnight — and nearly a third of those bring them into their beds while sleeping — according a study Wednesday that offered new evidence that mobile devices undermine the rest necessary for peak health. Read the article here.

Game On! Newsletter from Nielsen – June 2019

A monthly report from Nielsen looking at video game trends. Read the newsletter here.

When Social Media Is Really Problematic For Adolescents

Underlying problems may make some young people particularly vulnerable to what they find on social media, an expert says. Read the article here.

Nickelodeon Makes Esports Programming Move

In a deal with Emerge Gaming, a developer of online eSports and casual gaming tournament platforms, Viacom’s Nickelodeon will launch NickX, an interactive esports tournament platform on Nickelodeon. Read the article here.

Start Your Summer Screen-Time Rules Now!

Nip screen-time excesses in the bud with summer screen rules that start today. Read this blog post for suggestions from Common Sense Media here.

Millennials Play More Video Games, Watch ‘Game Video Content’

Nielsen’s SuperData unit, its video gaming research business, says millennials ages 22 to 30 watch almost six hours a week of game video content, on such platforms as YouTube or the video-gaming centric platform Twitch. Read the article here.

The New Normal: Parents, Teens, Screens & Sleep In The United States

From Common Sense Media: The latest addition to the New Normal research series explores how smartphones and other mobile devices have changed families’ morning and evening routines and in-person relationships. For the first time, parents and teens reveal their habits around screens and sleep, from where they keep phones at night to how often digital notifications wake them up (and why). Access the full report here.

How Kids’ Allowance Works In The Smartphone Age

When it comes to teaching children about money, chore charts are out, electronic accounts are in. Read the article here.

Snapchat Is Battling A Porn Studio Trying To Sneak X-Rated Lenses Past Its Censors

A porn studio called Naughty America is under fire from Snapchat after the app banned them from promoting themselves on the app, but the studio returned with new insidious ways to market themselves to users. Read the article here.

The Call To Self-Discipline In A Media-Saturated Age

Our society is addicted to spectacle. How do we keep our eyes are fixed on Christ? Read a review of a new book from Tony Reinke, titled Competing Spectacles: Treasuring Christ in the Media Age, by clicking here.

Dear Parents: The Internet Never Forgets

Many children growing up today will discover that their digital footprint began in utero and didn’t stop there. This phenomenon has come to be known as “sharenting”—when parents share pictures and videos of their kids on social media, creating an indelible trail of digital bread crumbs. Watch a video report covering this issue here.

What’s AirDrop And Why Are Kids Using It?

What parents need to know about AirDrop, the Apple feature that lets you instantly share photos, files, and other content and can expose kids and teens to inappropriate content. Read the article from Common Sense Media here.

A Teen Texted A Graphic Video Of Herself To Friends. A Court Said She’d Shared Child Pornography

The three teenagers regularly shared silly videos, trying to one-up each other and trusting the group text messages would remain private.

But one especially sensitive text did not stay among them – landing the teen who first sent it at the center of a novel court case over a sexually explicit video she made of herself and shared.

Read the rest of the article here.

My Teens Don’t Use Social Media, But Even They Can’t Escape The Pressure Of Perfectionism

My teenagers face a constant stream of information and a culture encouraging them to never unplug. No wonder our kids are under pressure. Read the rest of this opinion piece here.

Perfect Selfies Are All Over Facebook, Instagram And Snapchat. They’re Killing Us

People are literally risking their lives for the “gram.” So what could be so worth it to risk it all for a sensational self-portrait? Read the article here.

The Rise Of Teen Burner Phones And What To Do About Them

Time Elmore takes a look at the issue of teens using burner phones. Read his blog post here.

Limiting Screen Use For One Week May Improve Teenagers’ Sleep

Reducing blue light exposure at night may decrease fatigue and mood swings, researchers find. Read the article here.

For Teens, Romances Where The Couple Never Meets Are Now Normal

A generation that lives online is redefining dating; ‘We only met for 20 minutes and that was the first and last time we ever saw each other.’ Read the article here.

Tinder Dating Among Teens: When Swipe-Right Culture Goes To High School

The massively popular dating app claims to block underage users. The only workaround? Lying. And everyone is doing it. Read the article here.

Selena Gomez, The 3rd Most Followed Person On Instagram, Just Said Social Media Has Been Terrible For Young People

Selena Gomez is voicing her concern about the “terrible” effect that social media has had on her generation, and says she advocates taking breaks from the platforms. Read the article here.

How Social Networks Are Recruiting Teenage Extremists

The internet is a dangerous place for a lonely teen to be. Read the article here.

Teens Smuggle Burner Phones To Defy Parents

Social Media And Happiness: How Teens Are Affected By Social Media

Just how much is social media use affecting children? Read the article here.

Smartphones, Snapchat, Instagram Transform How Today’s Teens Bully Each Other

Today’s cyberbullies no longer rely on chat-based venues, such as texting or instant messages. Instead, social media platforms, sometimes used anonymously, are employed to strengthen mob mentalities and the shame of victims. Read the article here.

Netflix Just Released Its First Ever Top 10 List of Most-Watched Content

Netflix’s UK office explained a little bit more about how the lists work via its Twitter account on Thursday. Read the article here.

Madonna Says Giving Her Children Mobile Phones ‘Ended Their Relationship’

The singer says her children’s lives became dominated by the technology. Read the article here.

What We Can Learn About Leading Students From Instagram

How should some recent experiments and changes on Instagram inform our leadership? Read the blog post from Tim Elmore here.

Game On! Newsletter – May 2019

A look at esports and other video game insights from Neilsen. Download the report here.

Technology Cuts Children Off From Adults, Warns Expert

One of the world’s foremost authorities on child mental health today warns that technology is threatening child development by disrupting the crucial learning relationship between adults and children. Read the article here.

Video Game ‘Watchers’ Aren’t Limited to Esports

US video gamers spend more time watching video game content on streaming sites like Twitch and YouTube than watching esports tournaments. Read the report to learn more by clicking here.

For Teens In The U.S., Smartphones Are The Modern Security Blanket

While other generations got their start in life before the internet or smartphones, today’s teens have been online since they could walk and talk. They are the first generation of teenagers to experience the world through their smartphones. Read the insights from Viacom here.

Selfies: A Different Take On Reality

Sometimes just have to put the phone down and admire the view across the harbor. Read the article here.

Under Employers’ Gaze, Gen Z Is Biting Its Tongue On Social Media

Only about 1 in 10 teenagers say they share personal, religious or political beliefs on social media, according to a recent survey from Pew Research Center. Read the article here.

Change In Law Makes ‘Sexting’ Less Perilous For Washington Teens

If two minors share nude photos, are they felons? A change in state law signed recently by Gov. Jay Inslee clarifies the issue. Read the article here.

Switch Outsells PS4 and Xbox One In March; Top 10 Best-Selling Games Revealed

The NPD Group has released its report for the month, shining a light on the best-performing consoles and games in March. Read the article here.

Move Over Tide Pods: There’s A New ‘Shell On’ Teen Challenge In Town

Teenagers are eating banana peels, candy wrappers and more in a new viral competition dubbed the “shell on challenge.” Read the article here.

Pink Explains Why She’s Stopped Posting Photos Of Her Kids On Social Media

Pink, like many celebrities — and, in fairness, like most of the world — is active on social media. But recently she’s decided to change her posting habits, especially as related to her children. View the video clip here.

Surgery For The Sake Of Selfies? What A Recent Trend In Cosmetic Surgery Tells Us About Our Self-Absorbed Culture

Listen to Albert Mohler talk about plastic surgery and the selfie culture on his The Briefing podcast. Listen to the episode or read the transcript here.

BTS’ ‘Boy With Luv’ Shatters Viewing Records On YouTube

The male K-Pop group’s latest song notched 100 million views in less than 48 hours. It is the quickest to ever hit the milestone on YouTube. Learn more here.

13 Online Challenges Your Kid Already Knows About

From the Momo Challenge to the Mannequin Challenge, internet stunts can be funny — or completely frightening — for kids. Read this post from Common Sense Media here.

Teens Don’t Seem To Grow Out Of Problematic Cell Phone Use

Some teenagers develop a craving to use a cell phone during inappropriate times, and new research suggests it is not something that is likely to change as they become young adults. Read the article here.

Can Parents Post Photographs Of Their Children?

Does posting photos of children online endanger them? Read the article here.

Screen Time Linked To Behavioral Problems In Preschoolers

There has been a recent surge in research examining the impacts of screen time on children and adolescents amid rising concerns that too much time in front of smartphones and constant access to social media is disrupting development and increases the risk of behavior, mental, and mood disorders. Read the article here.

Gaming Goes Mainstream, But Play Varies By Gender And Age

Gone are the days of the male-dominated gaming landscape, as the activity has expanded to include a wider variety of players on more devices. Read the article here.

Driving While Distracted

Distracted driving is already enough of a hazard—thousands are killed each year in accidents where a driver is messing with a phone, texting or reading a text, talking, whatever. Read the full article here.

The Kids Use TikTok Now Because Data-Mined Videos Are So Much Fun

The video-sharing app by the Chinese-owned Bytedance, the world’s most valuable startup, has a younger audience than Facebook, an algorithm that learns you, and different ideas about free speech. Read the article here.

Game On! Newsletter: Are Consumers Ready For Gaming In The Cloud?

Cloud Gaming holds the promise of a future where high-fidelity gaming is accessible across every device and available to everyone – streamed effortlessly, with no lag or latency. Read the latest Game On! Newsletter from Nielsen here.

Adult Websites Top Visits From Mobile Devices

The adult industry saw the highest number of mobile users at 84% for the third straight year, followed by gambling at 80%. Read the article here.

Gaming Goes Mainstream, But Play Varies By Gender And Age

Gone are the days of the male-dominated gaming landscape, as the activity has expanded to include a wider variety of players on more devices. Read the research here.

Five Technology Rules Every Parent Must Follow

Tim Elmore lists five rules of thumb for adults using social media. Read his blog post here.

Teenage Fears

Through their social media feeds, teens have access to a constant flow of news and information. Research suggests that this is taking a toll on them and increasing their anxiety. Read the article here.

‘They’re Amazingly Isolated’: Is Social Media Making NBA Players Miserable?

NBA commissioner says many of the stars he meets are unhappy. The criticism they face on Twitter and Instagram could be to blame. Read the article here.

Parents’ Ultimate Guide To Instagram

Is Instagram safe? How does it work? And what’s a “finsta”? Everything parents need to know about this popular image-sharing app. Read the article from Common Sense Media here.

Too Many Drivers On Social Media While Around Emergency First Responders

Distracted driving is putting emergency first responders at risk, according to a new study. Read the article here.

Can You Stop Your Parents Sharing Photos Of You Online?

Love it or hate it, parents have made their way on to social media, and seem to be there to stay. Read the article here.

What If Instead Of Taking The SAT You Got To Play A Video Game?

L.A.-based startup Imbellus plans to upset the SAT and ACT’s monopoly with a test it says accurately gauges critical thinking. Read the article here.

Parents Are Losing Their Kids To Video Games

From the Growing Leaders blog:

“A recent article on the Fortnite epidemic found that alarmed doctors are now treating Fortnite-obsessed kids for mental and physical health problems; including everything from “carpal tunnel to sedentary obesity.” Dr. Kate Roberts, a psychologist from Wenham, Massachusetts found that the most disturbing part of the addictive trend is how it changes young kids’ behavior.”

Read the rest of the blog post here.

U.S. Parents 2019

As social change has altered the structure of family households in the US, digital technology has brought its own transformations. Amid these developments, parenthood today has characteristics that simply didn’t exist a couple generations ago. Read the report here.

What You Need To Know About The “Virtual Kidnapping” Scam Targeting Parents

Phone calls are made to the family demanding ransom money, but the scammers don’t actually have the child held hostage—they’re getting information from the parents’ social media. Read the article here.

How Parents Feel About – And Manage – Their Teens’ Online Behavior And Screen Time

Smartphones and social media are now an almost universal feature of teenage life in the United States. More than nine-in-ten U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 say they have access to a smartphone or use social media, according to a 2018 Pew Research Center survey. Read the research here.

Bedroom TV May Hinder Preschoolers’ Development

Preschoolers who spend too much time in front of the bedroom TV are at risk of not getting enough physical and social interactions to promote proper physical and socio-emotional development, according to a new study published in the journal Pediatric Research. Read the article here.

60+ Fascinating Smartphone Apps Usage Statistics For 2019 (Infographic)

The mobile era is also largely the app era, with mobile apps now dominating our time and web usage. View an infographic here.

Stop Debating Whether Too Much Smartphone Time Can Hurt Teens, And Start Protecting Them

Teens Aren’t Socializing In The Real World, And That’s Making Them Super Lonely

A new study finds that young people are reporting loneliness in increasing numbers and at a rate outpacing that of their elderly counterparts. Read the article here.

The State Of Social Media: A Comprehensive Guide On How Social Media Is Used Today

Social media is a constant river of change. Whether it’s the users, the platform, or the content being shared, it is evolving relentlessly. We’re steadily into 2019 and there are a lot of new trends hitting the surface and innovative ways users are utilizing social media. Read the article here.

Young, Female, And Addicted To Porn

The impact of porn on men has been studied, but little is known about how it could affect women. Read the article here.

The Netflix Of Gaming

Gaming brands are developing streaming services. Read the article here.

What’s Up With The Bizarre, Explicit Videos Infiltrating “Kid-Friendly” YouTube Channels?

While YouTube’s popularity doesn’t seem to be going anywhere any time soon, a recent phenomenon is making many people question the safety of this giant video platform, especially for kids. Read the article here.

‘Influencers’ On Social Media: A New Low In Marketing History?

What makes an effective influencer is “mass popularity and a continual personal narrative — where they party, who they date, where they shop. It’s all just part of the fantasy lifestyles that regular people want to live.” Read the rest of the article here.

The Hottest Chat App For Teens Is… Google Docs

How a writing tool became the new default way to pass notes in class. Read the article here.

Is Porn Making Young Men Impotent?

Up to a third of young men now experience erectile dysfunction. Some are turning to extreme measures such as penile implants – but is kicking their pornography habit the only solution? Read the article here.

Parents’ Ultimate Guide To TikTok

Is TikTok safe? How does it work? And can I do a duet with my kid? Everything you need to know about this popular musical singing and sharing app. Read the article from Common Sense Media here.

Discover What Americans Are Watching, Reading, Playing, Buying And More

These Top 10 lists from Nielsen are compiled on a weekly, monthly or quarterly basis. View the lists here.

Will The #trashtag Challenge Really Get ‘Bored Teens’ Offline And Cleaning Up The Planet?

Oftentimes, news stories with the words “teenager” and “challenge” reveal some dangerous thing teens are daring each other to do, all for views online. This is not one of those stories. Read the article here.

US eSports Ad Revenues Will Grow 25% In 2019

Competitive video gaming is a rapidly growing, multibillion-dollar industry, presenting new opportunities for marketers to reach and engage with fans worldwide. Read the report here.

Is Higher Ed Ready For The Tech Expectations Of The Teens Of 2022?

What will these teens expect of tech based on their current experiences? Read the article here.

I Ditched My Phone, Moved To Nepal, And It Changed My Life

Culture shock can be an instigator of change. Read the blog post here.

Less Tech = Fewer Regrets

“In a tech-ubiquitous world, I fear our reality is becoming more ‘tech’ and less ‘world.'”  But how do you fight that? Read the rest of the article here.

Game On! Newsletter from Nielsen – March 2019

Fortnite vs. Apex, video game tracking, and top 10s. Read the report here.

Meet The Female Esports Fan

Females are engaging with esports, and at increasing rates. According to a recent Nielsen Esports Fan Insights survey, 22% of esports fans around the world are female. Read the article here.

‘Pocket’ Offers A Glimpse Into A 15-Year-Old’s iPhone

Imagine you’ve hacked into someone else’s phone and are consuming all his texts, videos, Snapchats, and Instagrams in real time. Now imagine that someone is a 15-year-old boy, and you’re watching his life unfold entirely through the lens of an iPhone. That’s the premise behind Pocket, a captivating new short film starring the former Nickelodeon actor Mace Coronel. Read the article here.

How Do Teens Spend Their Time With Technology Plus Best Parental Control Apps

It will come as no surprise that teenagers today spend their time differently than a decade ago. The common answer will be that teens devote all their hours awake looking at a screen. While this may be partly true, a recent Pew Research Center analysis shows that teens are “devoting more time to sleep and homework, and less time to paid work and socializing.” Read the article here.