Balanced News from the Left, Center and Right (Left, Center, and Right-leaning perspectives)

Digital technology has increased access to information and convenience, but is it contributing to loneliness and poor mental health? Media on the left, right, and center have explored how digital technologies might be contributing to loneliness and disconnect amongst teens and adults.

The Cost of Community: Julie Beck, writing for The Atlantic (Left bias), highlighted the maxim, "Inconvenience is the cost of community," which has been repeated frequently on social media recently. Beck argued that sometimes the reason technology or innovation is even considered "convenient" is specifically because it "allows you to do something in isolation," such as self-checkout at the grocery store or conversationless trips on rideshare apps. However, Beck suggested that sometimes conveniences—such as avoiding small talk with strangers in rideshares or staying in to order delivery rather than socializing with friends—are actually a detriment to people as individuals as well as the society they're a part of.

Harm to Physical and Mental Health: Though many writers have highlighted the negative impact digital technologies and social media can have on mental health, The Times (Center) reported that teens are seeing an impact on physical health largely associated with increasing screen time. The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), a think tank based in the United Kingdom, found that 37 percent of teens "hardly ever" left their bedrooms during free time. The Times wrote that "the retreat into bedrooms has coincided with a collapse in physical activity and an escalating crisis in adolescent health," citing a significant increase in teenage obesity rates and teens who participate in no physical activity inside or outside school. A senior researcher at CSJ said, "Restricting harmful social media is part of the answer. But taking away the screen without offering anything in its place will not work. We must rebuild real-world alternatives to time spent online."

A Loneliness Epidemic: Blaze Media (Right) cited former surgeon general Vivek Murthy's warning that "loneliness and social isolation increase the risk for premature death by 26% and 29% respectively" and argued that the connections that can be built online do not satisfy humans' "deep need for two-way connection." Blaze also highlighted comments from conservative podcaster Glenn Beck (Right) who talked about the sometimes unhealthy "parasocial" relationships fans can have towards celebrities or internet personalities. Beck said that even though listeners feel familiar with him or other people they listen to or interact with online, these kinds of relationships can be dangerous because "it satisfies the hunger without feeding you."

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