*By Max Godnick*
Some child psychologists are starting to see young patients struggling with the effects of playing too much Fortnite, the apocalyptic survival video game played by more than 125 million people since it launched last summer.
"They are seeing kids who are coming in, their parents are concerned, they're having a lot of trouble putting the game down," Sara Miller, the health editor at Live Science, said in an interview with Cheddar about some anecdotal reports from mental health professionals.
Miller said some of the child psychologists who spoke to Live Science [described](https://www.livescience.com/62796-fortnite-addiction-therapy.html) children developing an addiction to the battle royale-style game from Epic Games. One psychologist told Live Science that parents should cap their children's Fortnite gameplay at no more than six hours a week.
Children obsessively playing video games is not a new phenomenon, but there may be some aspects of Fortnite that have a particularly strong pull on young gamers. The game's colorful cartoonish aesthetic obscures its violent goal ー kill everyone. It's relatively short rounds (about 20 minutes) keep gamers coming back for more. "It's like pulling a slot machine," said Miller.
Fortnite's popularity can also be attributed to its accessibility: It is available on XBox One, PlayStation 4, Microsoft Windows, iOS, and Nintendo's Switch. It's also free.
"That makes the barrier of entry really, really low," said Miller.
Some Fortnite proponents said the game is potentially beneficial to young gamers' development by helping them figure out how to construct solutions to unexpected problems. Users can build walls and other structures for cover during firefights. Microsoft leveraged similar world-building tactics for learning purposes when it launched Minecraft: Education Edition in 2016.
Miller says constructing barriers to protect from grenade launchers is no substitute for actual social interaction.
"Nothing really beats going out and making eye contact with people and interacting with them in person," she said.
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/is-fortnite-sending-kids-to-therapy).
Amazon warehouse workers in Alabama are set to begin voting to unionize for a second time after workers at the facility in the town of Bessemer overwhelmingly voted against forming a union during an election early last year; but in November, the National Labor Relations Board overturned the vote, upholding a union challenge of the results which argued that Amazon undermined the conditions for a fair election. Another round of ballots will now be mailed out to works at the warehouse for a so-called re-run election. Director of Labor and Employment Studies at San Francisco State University John Logan and National Field Director for Our Revolution Mike Oles joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
February 8 is Safer Internet Day, and Google has partnered with online education organization Khan Academy to release a courseload focused on internet safety. The partnership includes a $5 million donation towards content development from Google, with modules to be made available in various languages throughout 2022. Founder of Khan Academy, Sal Khan, joined Cheddar News to discuss the partnership. "We need to get to a world where everyone of all ages has a chance to learn and practice and feel good that they can navigate the internet in a safe way,” said Khan.
Big tech companies such as Amazon and Google are garnering criticism for failing at their proposed climate pledges, most of which rely on carbon offsets — a potential loophole where companies pay others to address their omissions. Gilles Dufrasne, policy officer at Carbon Market Watch, joined Cheddar News to explain the organization's negative evaluation. "The objective here is not to bash companies and say everybody is doing the wrong thing," he said. "The objective is to also provide lessons, and there are some companies that are doing the right thing."
U.S. markets opened lower as disappointing Meta earnings dragged down the tech-heavy Nasdaq. Today, investors will be watching for Amazon's Q4 earnings report set for release after the market close. Greg Swenson, Founding Partner, Brigg Macadam joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
Markets opened mostly higher led by gains in the tech sector on strong Q4 earnings. It comes after a tumultuous January which saw stocks suffer one of their worst months since the early days of the pandemic. Jim Worden, Chief Investment Officer, Wealth Consulting Group joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss early market activity.
CLMBR is hoping to become the next big thing in connected fitness. The brand offers a high intensity, low impact workout with on-demand, instructor-led classes. Avrum Elmakis, CLMBR's CEO and founder, joined Cheddar to discuss where the company is heading next.
