Many Americans have fallen victim to an endless stream of notifications and the near-constant urge to check their phones, likely leading to widespread phone addiction.
A new Netflix documentary "The Social Dilemma" sheds light on that addiction and how the major platforms can contribute. Tim Kendall, CEO of Moment and former president of Pinterest, was featured in the film..
"I think the takeaway is that we've lost control over our phones," Kendall told Cheddar on Monday. "We are just sort of going through life unconscious with this device sort of tugging at us in a way that we don't control, and it's making us addicted. But I think it's also polarizing us. I think it's also making us more angry."
Kendall's current work is with Moment, a system to help users take back control over their phones. Moment provides people the tools to develop an awareness for how much time they spend looking at the screen. It also offers tips for tweaking habits and an accountability group feature to foster a healthier relationship with technology.
Kendall calls the major social media networks like YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram "big social." With big social's attention-driven business model, Kendall believes the incentive to keep users checking and posting doesn't align with a person's best interests.
While some viewers of the documentary have now vowed to delete their accounts, Kendall doesn't believe that's a sustainable response.
"I think the answer is you keep your social media accounts and you're just more deliberate and mindful around your usage," Kendall said.
He also believes big social needs to take responsibility.
"They need to come up with a plan to segue off of an attention-based business model and figure out an alternative business model, and admittedly that's going to take years," Kendall said.
Making a comparison to auto manufacturers transitioning from fossil fuels to electrification, Kendall suggested big social could work with governments, such as the auto industry has done, to help navigate a "bumpy and economically-challenging" shift with incentives.
The Rev. Al Sharpton is set to lead a protest march on Wall Street to urge corporate America to resist the Trump administration’s campaign to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The New York civil rights leader will join clergy, labor and community leaders Thursday in a demonstration through Manhattan’s Financial District that’s timed with the anniversary of the Civil Rights-era March on Washington in 1963. Sharpton called DEI the “civil rights fight of our generation." He and other Black leaders have called for boycotting American retailers that scaled backed policies and programs aimed at bolstering diversity and reducing discrimination in their ranks.
President Donald Trump's administration last month awarded a $1.2 billion contract to build and operate what's expected to become the nation’s largest immigration detention complex to a tiny Virginia firm with no experience running correction facilities.
Chipmaker Nvidia is poised to release a quarterly report that could provide a better sense of whether the stock market has been riding an overhyped artificial intelligence bubble or is being propelled by a technological boom that’s still gathering momentum.
Cracker Barrel said late Tuesday it’s returning to its old logo after critics — including President Donald Trump — protested the company’s plan to modernize.
Low-value imports are losing their duty-free status in the U.S. this week as part of President Donald Trump's agenda for making the nation less dependent on foreign goods. A widely used customs exemption for international shipments worth $800 or less is set to end starting on Friday. Trump already ended the “de minimis” rule for inexpensive items sent from China and Hong Kong, but having to pay import taxes on small parcels from everywhere else likely will be a big change for some small businesses and online shoppers. Purchases that previously entered the U.S. without needing to clear customs will be subject to the origin country’s tariff rate, which can range from 10% to 50%.
Southwest Airlines will soon require plus-size travelers to pay for an extra seat in advance if they can't fit within the armrests of one seat. This change is part of several updates the airline is making. The new rule starts on Jan. 27, the same day Southwest begins assigning seats. Currently, plus-size passengers can pay for an extra seat in advance and later get a refund, or request a free extra seat at the airport. Under the new policy, refunds are still possible but not guaranteed. Southwest said in a statement it is updating policies to prepare for assigned seating next year.
Cracker Barrel is sticking with its new logo. For now. But the chain is also apologizing to fans who were angered when the change was announced last week.
Elon Musk on Monday targeted Apple and OpenAI in an antitrust lawsuit alleging that the iPhone maker and the ChatGPT maker are teaming up to thwart competition in artificial intelligence.
