Screen Deep

The rise of AI is often presented as an opportunity to make parenting easier, but what happens when technology begins to replace, rather than support, the human interactions children need most? 

On this episode of Screen Deep, host Kris Perry dives into this timely question with Dr. Dana Suskind, Founder and Co-Director of the TMW Center for Early Learning + Public Health and author of the book, Human Raised: Nurturing Connection, Curiosity, and Lifelong Learning in the Age of AI. Dr. Suskind highlights the importance of back-and-forth human interactions in early development, and shares which AI trends parents should be most wary of. She provides guidance for evaluating the use of AI tools, including using it to enhance, not replace, parenting. 
In this episode, you will learn:
Which essential “human” parts of parenting cannot be offloaded onto AI
Why AI can be integrated as a parenting “copilot” – but never the pilot
Five risky AI behaviors to watch for in parenting or child use of AI
Four value principles you can use as a framework for making intentional choices about AI
The human skills parents should help their children develop to flourish in the AI age
How to evaluate AI tools for use in family life

For more resources and research on this topic visit the Learn and Explore section of the Children and Screens website (https://www.childrenandscreens.org)

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Bluesky: @childrenandscreens.bsky.social

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Music: 'Life in Silico' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. www.scottbuckley.com.au

The rise of influencers has changed the conversation around advertising, marketing, and behavior change in adults as well as children. How do influencers and their sponsored content impact children’s thoughts, feelings, and behaviors? On this episode of Screen Deep, host Kris Perry interviews Dr. Liselot Hudders, Professor of Marketing Ethics at Ghent University, to unpack her research on how influencing works, why influencers produce content aimed at youth, what children understand about digital advertising techniques, and how policy plays an important role in protecting children from deceptive marketing. She also explores issues around “kidfluencers” and the use of children in parent influencer content. 
In this episode, you will learn:
Why children trust influencers and how it shapes their behavior
How technological advances are allowing increasingly sophisticated influencer marketing techniques to reach kids
Why sponsored content can be hard for children to recognize 
What influencer financial disclosures don’t accomplish (and why they are easy to miss) 
What parents can do to to counteract negative impacts of influencer content on children

For more resources and research on this topic visit the Learn and Explore section of the Children and Screens website (https://www.childrenandscreens.org)

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Follow Children and Screens on: 
Facebook: Children and Screens: Institute of Digital Media and Child Development
Instagram: @childrenandscreens
LinkedIn: Children and Screens: Institute of Digital Media and Child Development
X: @childrenscreens
Bluesky: @childrenandscreens.bsky.social

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Music: 'Life in Silico' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. www.scottbuckley.com.au

Children today are inundated with sophisticated marketing and ads online, particularly for unhealthy foods which can contribute to obesity and other negative health impacts. On this episode of Screen Deep, host Kris Perry is joined by food policy expert and leader in the fight against childhood obesity Dr. Kelly Brownell to discuss the ways in which this “toxic food environment” impacts children’s health and well-being. Dr. Brownell explores the addictive nature of highly processed and sugary foods and beverages, and draws parallels between the food and social media industries on how they prey on children’s vulnerabilities. He emphasizes the importance of policy solutions to help families cope with the powerful effect of food advertising on children’s health.
In this episode, you will learn:
How screen use is linked to childhood obesity
How daily exposure to large amounts of food advertising influences child and adolescent food choices and behaviors
Why the food industry is incentivized to market unhealthy and addictive foods to children starting at young ages
Why parents need support from policymakers and regulators to help protect children from the health effects of unhealthy online food marketing 
The similarities between the food industry’s use of additives and the tobacco industry’s use of ingredients to manipulate desire and increase product appeal and dependence

For more resources and research on this topic visit the Learn and Explore section of the Children and Screens website (https://www.childrenandscreens.org)

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Follow Children and Screens on: 
Facebook: Children and Screens: Institute of Digital Media and Child Development
Instagram: @childrenandscreens
LinkedIn: Children and Screens: Institute of Digital Media and Child Development
X: @childrenscreens
Bluesky: @childrenandscreens.bsky.social

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Music: 'Life in Silico' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. www.scottbuckley.com.au

For decades, researchers have studied why babies and young children learn differently from screens than they do from real-world experiences. On this episode of Screen Deep, host Kris Perry is joined by Dr. Rachel Barr, Professor of Psychology at Georgetown University and a leading expert in early childhood and digital media. Dr. Barr describes why it’s difficult for young children to learn from digital media, a concept called the “video transfer deficit effect,” and explains which specific features of high quality media paired with parenting practices can support learning and development. Dr. Barr also describes why video chatting is often an exception to screen time guidelines, how family media plans can help family relationships, and the importance of considering children’s environments holistically when studying how they interact with and are impacted by digital media.
In this episode, you will learn:
Why it can be difficult for young children to learn from digital media and how researchers discovered the “transfer deficit effect” 
How parental guidance and educational app design can make learning from media easier for children
What features to look for in educational shows and apps 
One expert-recommended app for young children and what makes it stand out 
Why thinking more expansively beyond “screen time” is essential for evaluating your child’s media use
How parents’ own media use — and how they talk about it with their children — can shape family relationships

For more resources and research on this topic visit the Learn and Explore section of the Children and Screens website (https://www.childrenandscreens.org)

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Follow Children and Screens on: 
Facebook: Children and Screens: Institute of Digital Media and Child Development
Instagram: @childrenandscreens
LinkedIn: Children and Screens: Institute of Digital Media and Child Development
X: @childrenscreens
Bluesky: @childrenandscreens.bsky.social

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Music: 'Life in Silico' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. www.scottbuckley.com.au

As courts increasingly examine the impact of social media on young people, new legal approaches are beginning to reshape how responsibility for harms are understood, shifting the focus from content to platform design. On this special episode of Screen Deep, host Kris Perry speaks with Matthew Bergman, founding attorney of the Social Media Victims Law Center, professor of Lewis & Clark Law School, and a member of Children and Screens’ Scientific Advisory Board. Bergman also served on the legal team representing the plaintiff in a landmark case examining the impact  of social media platform design on youth.
Together, Kris and Matt explore why it has historically been difficult to bring lawsuits against technology companies, how recent litigation strategies are more effective than past efforts, and what these developments could mean for the future of platform accountability.
In this episode, you will learn:
Why social media companies have historically avoided accountability for harm encountered through their products, and how that may be changing 
How recent lawsuits have uncovered key internal evidence that social media platforms were designed to be addictive to young users despite known risks 
How legal experts are using scientific research and product liability law to help define harms to youth and establish social media platform accountability
Why recent lawsuits are focusing on social media platform design rather than content, and why that matters 
Why legislative change is needed to assist the effort to enforce social media platform transparency and accountability

For more resources and research on this topic visit the Learn and Explore section of the Children and Screens website (https://www.childrenandscreens.org)

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Follow Children and Screens on: 
Facebook: Children and Screens: Institute of Digital Media and Child Development
Instagram: @childrenandscreens
LinkedIn: Children and Screens: Institute of Digital Media and Child Development
X: @childrenscreens
Bluesky: @childrenandscreens.bsky.social

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Music: 'Life in Silico' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. www.scottbuckley.com.au