I posted these words this morning on Instagram, and I want to share them with you here:
It's easy to feel alone as a parent. Even though you have 1,500 Facebook friends and 1,000 Instagram followers.
Especially when it comes to difficult digital issues.
I believe you ARE capable. In fact, I believe that you - mom or dad or grandparent or caring adult - YOU have digital superpowers just waiting to be unleashed!
Our mission: show families, schools, and churches how to create safer digital spaces. Every day since 2015.
Are you feeling alone right now? Do you have a burning tech question today? Send us a DM or reply. We'll do our best to help!
You don't have to feel alone. This week, I've responded to 55 emails about routers, porn, presentations, Instagram, adopting a son with special needs who's already hooked on screens, and more. And it's only Wednesday! You, my friend, are NOT alone.
Parenting with you,
The Wall Street Journal Tested TikTok's Algorithm. Here's What They Found.
I don't say this lightly, but TikTok's algorithm has a scary ability to figure us out. Dare I say, god-like in its predictive abilities. We posted our findings on Instagram, and it has quickly become the 5th most popular post in our history (in only 5 days).
TikTok is the first non-Facebook app to surpass 3 billion downloads globally. We’re not surprised given the addictive nature of the app. The link above to our Instagram review explains what parents need to know.
Instagram has a new feature that limits sensitive content…but it doesn’t work how you might expect. If the option is checked, then sensitive content is only limited in the Explore section. A user can still search for any kind of content that they want. For Families:Watch our YouTube video explaining why this setting is so deceptive.
MORE from Instagram - On July 27, Instagram released 3 new features intended to better protect kids. We won't celebrate a company that took 11 years to treat kids like kids, but these are moving in the right direction:
Defaulting birthdays under 16 with private accounts (but can be changed)
Hiding kids from potentially predatory users (if they haven't lied about their age)
Only allowing advertisers to target adults.
This change all points to the really important step of using an accurate birthday. Which anyone can change (which is still a problem).
Snapchat users can watch free episodes of HBO Max pilot shows in the Snapchat app. Users are able to co-watch with friends. Viewers are required to enter their birthdate to get access to age-appropriate episodes, but there is no age verification, so users can put in whatever they want. For Families: There is also no way to change the birthdate after the fact. Most of the shows available are rated TV-MA. You can't turn it off.
Germany is going to block one of the world's largest pornography websites. German regulators have been compelling porn sites to implement age verification and those that fail to do so will be blocked. The regulation group is taking legal action against four sites but has not confirmed which ones.
Clubhouse is available to everyone now. There is no invite required or waitlist. They also added a messaging feature for one-on-one and group chats, as it evolves into true social media (it was only a matter of time). For Families: As with any live content, there are risks involved. Read our Clubhouse app review to learn more.
Amazon's Wattpad-like service, Kindle Vella, is live. The app gives writers a platform to publish their stories and make money. Kindle Vella features these stories in episodes. The first 2-3 are free and then the subsequent episodes are behind a paywall. There does not appear to be any age filtering/parental controls. For Families: We know that Kindles are popular with young kids. Here's our Kindle Parental Control Review, where parents can learn how to control access to apps like Vella.
