Welcome to Parent Pixels, a parenting newsletter filled with practical advice, news, and resources to support you and your kids in the digital age. This week:
🤳 How do teens use social media today? New findings from the Pew Research Center reveal that about one-third of teens are on social media almost constantly. Our takeaway is that — like it or not — social media is a social reality for a majority of US teens. It’s essential that parents stay involved, use parental controls, and talk to their kids about setting boundaries around the digital world. Here are a few highlights from the Pew report:
📱 Cell phones are fueling school fights: A review by the New York Times of more than 400 fight videos from schools across the country reveals a troubling trend: middle and high school students are using phones and social media to arrange, provoke, film, and share violent campus brawls. These videos often ignite new cycles of cyberbullying, verbal aggression, and physical violence, as students pressure peers to fight for the sake of creating shareable clips. Some districts are now facing negligence lawsuits from parents, while others have sued social media companies, claiming their “addictive” features drive compulsive student use and amplify the problem. “Cellphones and technology are the No. 1 source of soliciting fights, advertising fights, documenting — and almost glorifying — fights by students,” said Kelly Stewart, an assistant principal at a high school in Juneau, Alaska. “It is a huge issue.” Here’s how to spot and address cyberbullying on social media.
💊 About 60% of young people have seen drug content on social media: The marketing of illegal drugs on open platforms, such as social media and messaging apps like Telegram, has increased in recent years, according to a recent story in Wired. And although companies claim they remove millions of pieces of drug-related content each year, their efforts aren’t foolproof — dealers ran hundreds of paid ads on Meta platforms in 2024 to sell illegal substances. As much as 13% of social media posts may advertise illegal drugs, and among 13- to 18-year-olds, 10% have reported purchasing drugs via social media. Those exposed to drug ads were 17 times more likely to purchase drugs on social media compared to those who had not seen such ads. They’re common enough that young people can stumble upon them on TikTok and Instagram, even if they’re not actively looking. Parents, talk to your kids about the risks of drug content online, and save these tips on what to do if you find drug content on your child’s phone.
Parent Pixels is a biweekly newsletter filled with practical advice, news, and resources to support you and your kids in the digital age. Want this newsletter delivered to your inbox a day early? Subscribe here.
The end of one year and the start of a new one is a great time to talk to your child about their goals and resolutions. Here are some conversation-starters to get them thinking about how they want to shift their relationship with technology in the new year.
Is your child being harassed via text? Here are the signs parents should know about cyberbullying through texting and how to support your child.
Fourth Wing is a fantasy book made popular, in part, by BookTok. The next installment in the series comes out in January, and it might be on your child’s radar. But what’s the age rating?
🎬 Looking for something to watch with your kids this season? Check out Common Sense Media’s list of the best movies of 2024.
🤓 Did you know? At the BrightCanary blog, we publish resources every week to help you keep up with the latest news and updates about digital parenting, monitoring, and more.
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