Pete Etchells

Is Jonathan Haidt right about smartphones? In ‘The Anxious Generation’, Haidt makes the case that social media and smartphones have ‘rewired’ today’s teenagers, but his critics say the evidence tells us something very different - and that bann...

“It’s really difficult to craft a story that explains the complexity of the research literature, but still gives people something to take away with them to do. And that’s what parents are craving' @peteetchells.bsky.social
@jonsevers.bsky.social @tesmagazine.bsky.social
www.tes.com/magazine/tea...

I believe the blue one’s name is Leonardo.

So it turns out I'm on the editorial board for a scam journal (news to me!). "Istoriya" is a SCOPUS-indexed journal apparently, but it's not this one: istoriya.ac. Two journals with the same name and ISSN, but different editorial boards - one entirely fabricated but using real academics.

I have a very deep distrust of IAI and how they set up debates. If nothing else, they run paid ticketed events and don’t offer fees.

I broke so many joysticks playing this game. The wiggle you had to do to activate a power up 🫠

@taylorlorenz.bsky.social hi Taylor, where’s the best place to send a message or email? I have a book coming out in the US next week and I was wondering if you’d be interested in a copy.

Thanks Ali!

Episode 8: Ask Pete and Andy Listen now | Keeping kids safe online, the movement against ed tech, the biggest challenges to research, and more

Episode 8 of Screen Sense is now available wherever you get your podcasts. We’re taking a break for a while, & we thought it would be fun to finish off with a listener Q&A.

In this last episode (for now), we cover Qs around VR, online safety & more: screensensepodcast.substack.com/p/episode-8-...

When the Right Tried to Cancel the Turtles In the 1980s and '90s, successive moral panics about hooliganism and violence on TV culminated in a right-wing campaign against a dangerous social phenomenon: the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Have seen a few mentions on here lately about the 1980s ninja panic in the UK, so am reposting my piece about how this led to the BBC broadcasting the Teenage Mutant HERO Turtles in 1990

tribunemag.co.uk/2021/04/when...

Ah brilliant, congrats Mike! Can’t wait to read this.

Thanks Rory!

a man wearing a hat is sitting in a car with a sign that says airlines in the background ALT: a man wearing a hat is sitting in a car with a sign that says airlines in the background

Typically you’re aiming for this one:

In order to answer this question we must first define what we mean by a reflective surface. Surface variability and frequency of use dictates which Candy man you get, I think.

Episode 7: Screen time myths and misconceptions Mythconceptions?

When it comes to screens, everyone seems to have an opinion - but how much of what we hear is actually true? Episode 7 of Screen Sense is out now, and we take on some of the most common myths and misconceptions around screen time:

screensensepodcast.substack.com/p/episode-7-...

Ozzy Osbourne Farewell Show Was The Highest-Grossing Charity Concert Of All Time On July 5, Ozzy Osbourne put on a farewell concert, performing as a solo artist and with Black Sabbath for the last time in the band’s hometown of Birmingham, UK. Billed as the “Back To The Beginning”...

Ozzy going out after raising $190 million for sick kids and a Parkinson’s cure is metal AF.

And one final thought: Ozzy going out after giving an emotional final performance that raised a ton of money for charity is more spiritually uplifting and did more genuine good than anything any televangelist and religious grifter who railed against him ever did combined.

do you ever stare at the ceiling and think about how the worldwide scientific establishment did the impossible and created a COVID vaccine in under a year and the response of the general public has been to go on an unstoppable rampage to destroy science and scientists

Extremely well deserved Saloni, congrats!

Not the same guys obvs, but, plot twist:

Episode 5: How do we ask better research questions about tech and mental health? Listen now | It’s one of the biggest questions in digital parenting: Do digital technologies cause mental health problems in children and teenagers? The answer is complicated, and the desire to find a...

How do we ask better research questions about tech & mental health?

In Ep 5 of Screen Sense, @shuhbillskee.bsky.social & I dig into why the research is messy, what better studies look like & how the public debate makes it harder to get clear answers.

screensensepodcast.substack.com/p/episode-5-...

⏰ More Than Robots #91 July 2025 fugit inreparabile tempus Time flies like an arrow and yet also seems to go in circles. Here are some things to make the most of the time available.

More Than Robots July edition is available now
A stroll around the youth/digital/equity Venn
Ft @ofcom.bsky.social @shuhbillskee.bsky.social @peteetchells.bsky.social @renatesamson.bsky.social @pshe-association.bsky.social @cfyounglives.bsky.social and more

www.morethanrobots.org.uk/more-than-ro...

Thanks for the plug Cliff! Lots of interesting stuff to read there.

“Smith Noah” posted 12 articles in two days there, garbage.

Episode 4: Why do we find it so difficult to talk about tech effects? We often have a very real sense that digital technology can do damage to our wellbeing, and sometimes in ways that feel seriously worrying.

Episode 4 of Screen Sense is out now! This week, we explore why our public conversations about tech often get stuck in fear, and how we might move toward more helpful ways of thinking and talking about screens, wellbeing and family life:

screensensepodcast.substack.com/p/episode-4-...

Episode 3: The myth of the digital native Podcast Episode · Screen Sense: Parenting in a Digital World · 27/06/2025 · 54m

Episode 4 of Screen Sense is coming tomorrow morning. In the meantime, here's a last promo for our latest episode, on the myth of the digital native:
podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/e...

If only someone was posting short overviews of books they’d read this year on some sort of medium that… does something… braining… 🫠

Ah, thanks for the advice! I think 1 is the one I struggle with the most - once I finish a book I always seem to go through an existential crisis about where to turn next.

How do you manage it?! I’m in awe!

Congrats Andrea!