What I’m watching: a documentary that will give you pause

Date: 11/5/2020

What I’m watching: a documentary that will give you pause.

On Netflix: “The Social Dilemma”

Every week, my iPhone sends me a message telling me how much screen time I’ve used in the past week and whether it’s increasing or decreasing. It’s a service that is interesting to me and would be valuable if I had a child using such as device.

After watching this new documentary, though, I doubt I would ever allow a child under my guidance to ever look at such a device for fear he or she would be exposed to social media. Social media is definitely something that should be reserved for adults.

“The Social Dilemma” might be seen by some people as silly as the anti-cannabis movies of 80 years ago. What’s the problem with kids on Facebook or Twitter?
 

That question is answered in disturbing detail. Do you understand how Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other really work? What is their actual effect on people?

Director Jeff Orlowski has fashioned a truly cautionary tale told by a large number of people who actually built the social media edifice, but are explaining just how bad it can be. People in leadership and development positions from Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest are all interviewed. The central person telling this story is Tristan Harris, now with the Center for Humane Technology, but who was a design ethicist at Google.

Harris and other interview subjects contend there is plenty of positive potential with social media platforms, but they are not being used for that. The way the platforms make money is the problem.

To sell the most advertising they can, the platforms must keep people looking at them for as long as possible. Engagement is the important factor here.

The result is a new kind of addiction. The revelation that fake news engages people more than real news is very disturbing.

The fact that people seek constant approval from what they post online is a key part of the addiction and one speaker noted the incidence of suicide among both preteen and teen girls has risen dramatically since 2011.

The interviews with the experts are illustrated by a fictional drama involving a family facing social media challenges. The middle-school daughter is clearly addicted to watching her phone constantly and is easily affected by what is said in her social media pages. Although this part of the film is not necessary – there is another sequence that involves the family’s older son as well – it’s clearly an attempt to present something more than talking heads.

I think the information presented by people who worked in social media is compelling enough. As artificial intelligence continues to find its way more and more into everyday life, this film is the digital equivalent of the canary in the coal mine.

Watch it and you may think twice about what you and your family use social media.