I've just read this. It is very, very good!!

There are some really interesting (though maybe unsurprising?) insights in this report, eg:

“The research suggests, however, that social media use is becoming more passive and circumspect. Around half of adult social media users (49%) now actively post, share or comment- down from 61% in 2024…”

The Kids Are Online: Confronting the Myths and Realities of Young Digital Life, By Ysabel Gerrard, University of California Press, 2025, 312 pp. £80.00 (hardback), £24.00 (paperback) (eBook). ISBN: 9780520416093. https://www.ucpress.edu/books/the‐kids‐are‐online/paper Click on the article title to read more.

To read Devina's review in the British Journal of Sociology, see: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1...

'The emphasis on the book's scope, the inclusion of appendices detailing participant demographics and ethical considerations, and Gerrard's scholarly and public writing credentials are not mere paratextual elements but central to establishing trustworthiness in a contentious field.'

🥹🥹🥹

The Kids Are Online by Ysabel Gerrard - Paper Scholarship is a powerful tool for changing how people think, plan, and govern. By giving voice to bright minds and bold ideas, we seek to foster understanding and drive progressive change.

I've just returned from my maternity leave to an emailing linking me to the first scholarly review of my book: The Kids Are Online (@ucpress.bsky.social). I feel *so* honoured that @devinasarwatay.bsky.social has taken the time and care to write such a thorough piece. www.ucpress.edu/books/the-ki...

UKgov publishes new screen time guidance for under 5s
👨‍🍼 <2s: Avoid screens except shared activities
👶 2-5s: Try for less than 1hr a day
📱 Choose safe, slow-paced content
🧑‍🧒‍🧒 Lead by example
🛌 Have screen-free areas/times
Glad to have contributed. Parent guidance and research report linked below.

Ad for AI video app which said it could 'remove anything' banned The UK regulator said the ad condoned

‘"Because the ad implied that viewers could use an app to remove a woman's clothing, we considered it condoned digitally altering and exposing women's bodies without their consent," the agency said in a statement.’

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

The world wants to ban children from social media, but there will be grave consequences for us all | Taylor Lorenz Age-verification systems require collecting sensitive data to support the biometric information. In no time, the internet will become a fully surveilled digital panopticon, says technology journalist ...

“Once built, this surveillance infrastructure will be abused, just as every prior expansion of government surveillance and censorship power has been.”

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

'Meanwhile, leaked information about Twitch streamer income revealed that someone would need to rank in the “top 0.015% of all streamers” to achieve the current median household income (in the US) (D’Anastasio, 2021).'

'...both academic research and firsthand accounts from creators reveal marked disparities in the tiers of economic success. On YouTube, for instance, researchers estimate that the top 3% of channels receive 90% of the viewership (Bärtl, 2018).'

Up next on my post-maternity leave reading list, @brookeerinduffy.bsky.social & @coltenmeisner.bsky.social's 'platform governance at the margins'.

journals.sagepub.com/doi/epdf/10....

I might even laminate it!

I also went through a Garamond phase in my PhD era! I've since swapped to Franklin Gothic Book, which feels a bit too casual for a CV...

Drawing on Taina Bucher's work, they say: 'Alongside gatekeeping videos for individual users, visibility moderation disciplines content creators through their desire to be seen, as well as through the threat of invisibility.’

I am officially back from maternity leave and trying to retrain my brain to write a book chapter. I've turned to Jing Zeng & @bondykaye.bsky.social fabulous article on visibility moderation for inspiration ✨

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10....

A 'quiet revolution': Why young people are swapping social media for lunch dates, vinyl records and brick phones Gen Z and millennials deleting their social media platforms cite the increasing pressures of being online as well as the damage to their mental health.

Big thanks to @cnbc.com's Sawdah Bhaimiya for including some of my quotes in this piece!

www.cnbc.com/2026/02/07/y...

Donate to Honoring the life of Fobazi Ettarh: Funeral & other costs, organized by Ysabel Gerrard Hello all, my name is Ysabel and I’m fundraising for my frien… Ysabel Gerrard needs your support for Honoring the life of Fobazi Ettarh: Funeral & other costs

gofund.me/a660f5efa

Donate to Honoring the life of Fobazi Ettarh: Funeral & other costs, organized by Ysabel Gerrard Hello all, my name is Ysabel and I’m fundraising for my frien… Ysabel Gerrard needs your support for Honoring the life of Fobazi Ettarh: Funeral & other costs

To all who have been following Fobazi’s story, I’ve posted an update to the GoFundMe page. We’ve been inundated with messages asking how people can best support @elenamaris.bsky.social during this time, and my post answers that question.

Thank you in advance for reading it 🙏🏼 gofund.me/2a39028c1

To all who have been following Fobazi’s story, I’ve posted an update to the GoFundMe page. We’ve been inundated with messages asking how people can best support @elenamaris.bsky.social during this time, and my post answers that question.

Thank you in advance for reading it 🙏🏼 gofund.me/2a39028c1

With sorrow, we announce the passing of FOBAZI M. ETTARH 1989 - 2026. Fobazi changed so many lives with her friendship, love, and brilliance. She was so loved, and leaves behind a powerful legacy. We thank Fobazi's community for their support over the last several months of her illness. A private burial will be held for family. We will be in touch with further information about a future Celebration of Life event, as well as ways to support Fobazi's family and legacy.

Why are so many women joining Reddit? New research suggests that growing numbers of women are leaving X – and turning to Reddit instead

“Have you checked Reddit?”

Thoroughly enjoyed contributing to this @dazeddigital.com piece by the brilliant Ashleigh Spiliopoulou. www.dazeddigital.com/life-culture...

Donate to Fobazi’s road to recovery: Kidney and liver transplant, organized by Ysabel Gerrard Hello all, my name is Ysabel and I’m fundraising for my friends … Ysabel Gerrard needs your support for Fobazi’s road to recovery: Kidney and liver transplant

We’ve posted an update on Fobazi here:

gofund.me/b2812352a

Sending solidarity from maternity leave to my brilliant colleagues today ✊🏼

Mark Pendleton wears a pink UCU beanie, while standing on a train platform in the dawn light

Been a while since the pink beanie came out. Sheffield pickets here we come.

Our message to management is simple: No redundancies. Stop the incessant restructures. Listen to your staff. There is no University of Sheffield without us.

The landline phone is making a comeback and your brain will thank you Young people are turning to landline telephones to cure their smartphone obsessions and brain rot.

Thrilled to be quoted in this fascinating @mashable.com piece by Alice Glover.

'15 years ago, 62% of Americans said the landline was a necessity of life [...] By the end of 2022, 72.6% of adults and 81.9% of children lived in households without a landline'.

mashable.com/article/land...

The algorithm failed music True music discovery has suffered.

What an excellent article: “Its goal isn’t to help you discover new music, its goal is simply to keep you listening for as long as possible. It serves up the safest songs possible to keep you from pressing stop.”

www.theverge.com/column/81574...

The 'Womanosphere' Is Coming for Teen Girls How beauty and wellness influencers are part of a misinformation ecosystem pushing traditional values on girls.

A great piece by @kattenbarge.bsky.social, with a powerful note from @mariahlwellman.bsky.social that the radicalisation of women and girls has flown under the radar because girly content online = make-up = ✨trivial✨, and yet it so clearly, clearly isn’t.

www.teenvogue.com/story/womano...

Right?! On the one hand I get that this satisfies the frustrated parents of Sephora Kids, who are begged to buy products far too mature for delicate skin. But on the other hand it feels…bleak?