When Connection Becomes Isolation

The internet was supposed to bring us together. That was the dream when it first landed in our homes—instant communication, access to communities that stretched beyond our neighborhoods, endless possibilities for learning and friendship. And in some ways, it delivered. But over time the cracks started to show.

Research tells the story. A Pew study found that people who spend more time on social media are 30% less likely to even know their neighbors. In the UK, researchers tracked broadband expansion and found civic engagement dropped as internet use went up. Here at home, one in four Americans now eats every single meal alone, a number that’s jumped over 50% since 2003. And for our kids, the Surgeon General has sounded the alarm: heavy social media use is tied to more loneliness, lower happiness, and in some cases real harm to mental health.

You don’t really need the stats to see it. It’s in the teenager scrolling through dinner instead of joining the conversation, in the quiet weekend afternoons where everyone’s in separate rooms on separate screens. It’s the way public “third spaces”—places like libraries, parks, and coffee shops—feel emptier than they used to. Without those spaces, kids miss out on casual face-to-face moments that teach empathy, trust, and how to be part of something bigger than themselves.

When Online Spaces Work—and When They Don’t

That doesn’t mean everything online is bad. For some kids—especially the ones who feel out of place in school or live in areas without a lot to do—the internet can be a lifeline. It can help them find friends who share their interests, get support, or connect with people who understand what they’re going through.

The trouble is when online life becomes the only space. Without real-world connection, relationships flatten. The tone of someone’s voice, the quick smile across a table, the way you read a room—those don’t translate well to a chat box. Sociologist Sherry Turkle calls it “connected loneliness.” Always reachable, never really together.

Turning It Around

Here’s the good news: we can do something about it. The internet can still be a tool for connection if we treat it like one.

As parents, that starts with modeling it ourselves—phones away during meals, no half-listening while scrolling, making space for actual conversation. We can nudge our kids to use the internet as a bridge to real life: set up a park day in the group chat, invite friends over for a game night they planned online, or join a club they found through social media.

And we can bring back those third spaces as part of family life. Visit the library together, go to community events, get involved in something local. The more our kids see connection happening in real life, the more they’ll understand that while screens are fine, people are better.

The internet didn’t have to make us feel so far apart. It’s not too late to use it to bring us closer again.

August 14, 2025 0

How Parents Can Help Kids Navigate Echo Chambers

In today’s digital world, where algorithms tailor what we see online, echo chambers are a growing concern—especially for kids and teens. These are spaces, often online, where people are only exposed to ideas and opinions they already agree with. This can limit critical thinking, increase polarization, and make it harder for kids to engage meaningfully with people who think differently than they do.

But there are ways parents can help. The key is not to shut down your child’s opinions, but to help them become more aware of how our minds work, how media shapes what we see, and how we can become better listeners and thinkers.

1. Awareness is the First Step

A good starting point is to talk about confirmation bias, a psychological tendency where people seek out or believe information that confirms what they already think. For example, if a teen believes a certain political party is always wrong, they might only watch videos or read posts that support that idea, even if opposing content is more accurate.

Helping your child recognize that everyone has biases can be empowering. There’s something called the Hawthorne effect, where simply being aware of a behavior or bias makes people more likely to change it. If your child knows they are naturally inclined to filter out opposing views, they may be more willing to pause and question their reactions instead of instinctively rejecting new information.

2. Encourage Open-Mindedness—With Practice

It’s easy to say “be open-minded,” but it takes real work to practice. As a parent, model what it looks like to engage critically with content you disagree with. That means not just dismissing something as wrong, but asking: Why do people believe this? What evidence supports it? What might they be missing?

You can even talk about real-world examples. Maybe your child saw a heated debate on social media or had a friend share something controversial. Use these moments to explore how people react when they’re challenged. Often, people double down instead of reconsidering their views. That’s normal—our brains don’t like being told we’re wrong. But it’s also a chance to slow things down and talk about how to ask questions and listen respectfully, even in disagreement.

3. Share the Science of Contact Theory

Psychologist Linda R. Tropp of UMass Amherst is a leading researcher on something called contact theory. Her research shows that when people from different backgrounds or belief systems interact under positive and respectful circumstances, they tend to see each other as more human and less as “the other.”

You don’t need a formal study to know this works. Think about sports teams, clubs, or school projects—when kids work together with someone they wouldn’t normally hang out with, their assumptions often shift. Parents can encourage this kind of positive contact by supporting inclusive activities, volunteering, or even just talking about people with differing views in more empathetic, less judgmental ways.

4. Remember—We’re All Human

The biggest reminder you can give your child is this: we’re all human. That sounds simple, but in the heat of an online argument or a group chat debate, it’s easy to forget. Emotions take over. We get defensive, and we forget that the person on the other side isn’t a villain—they’re just someone with a different story, shaped by different experiences.

Even the fact that contact theory works is proof that we sometimes forget this. But when we slow down and actually connect, we’re more likely to understand, or at least respect, other viewpoints.

5. Make Curiosity a Habit

Finally, teach your kids that being curious is stronger than being right. The communities they’re a part of—at school, online, or in their friend groups—should encourage asking questions, not just repeating opinions. If your child sees a piece of content they strongly disagree with, challenge them to engage with the evidence, not just dismiss it out of hand.

Ask questions like:

“What’s the source of this information?”
“Is there another perspective on this?”
“What might be missing?”

These questions can open up conversations that help kids break out of their echo chambers—not by forcing them to change their views, but by giving them the tools to think more deeply.

Final Thoughts

Helping your child break out of echo chambers doesn’t mean changing their beliefs. It means guiding them to think critically, engage respectfully, and remember the shared humanity behind every opinion. In a world full of noise, that kind of mindset is more valuable than ever.

August 12, 2025 0

Echo Chambers and the Problems With Modern Day Media

If your teen only ever sees TikTok, memes, and videos that agree with what they already believe, they might be stuck in what’s called an “echo chamber.” Social media algorithms are designed to keep kids (and adults!) engaged by showing them more of what they already like — but that can also mean they’re rarely exposed to different points of view. Over time, this can make it harder for them to think critically, have open-minded conversations, or tell the difference between facts and opinions.

Social media platforms are designed to keep users engaged. The average kid isn’t interested in understanding how social media algorithms work. This paired with humans inherit nature to watch content that affirms their biases creates a negative and harmful feedback loop. I myself have ……….as a 20 year old college student. I have been very active in the gym and as someone who started going a lot recently I have been attempting to perfect my workout regimen. Engaging with gym content has increased the amount of gym content I see but the algorithm links liking gym content to being right wing and harmful practices to increase looks which younger people refer to as looksmaxing which is a whole other issue on its own but for the sake of staying on topic looks maxing is a harmful trend of doing everything including harmful practices to your body/face to look your best but in turn it has created a lot of insecurities for young boys. Research from the University of Texas at Austin finds, “social media companies therefore rely on adaptive algorithms to assess our interests and flood us with information that will keep us scrolling.” These algorithms create a feedback loop where users are continuously shown content that reinforces their existing views while being shielded from opposing perspectives. Think about the young boy who sees a Charlie Kirk debate and engages with the content and then all of a sudden is receiving and engaging with extreme right wing content in their feed. This selective exposure to information fosters a “biased, tailored media experience” that contributes to the development of echo chambers.As humans we are programmed to take the easiest path forward and as we age we learn engaging with difficulties is what makes us stronger. A young kid who has not learned these lessons yet is subjected to continued confirmation bias hindering their ability to grow.

Subhed about echo chambers

A significant consequence of echo chambers is the amplification of confirmation bias, a psychological phenomenon where individuals favor information that confirms their pre-existing beliefs. Social media platforms actively facilitate this bias by connecting users with like-minded individuals and content creating an ideological bubble in which users are rarely exposed to contradictory viewpoints. In turn, they become more entrenched in their beliefs, less willing to engage with alternative perspectives, and more susceptible to misinformation.

Echo chambers don’t just shape opinions — they can also help spread false or harmful information, especially around sensitive topics like race. When kids only hear one side of a story, or keep seeing the same messages over and over from like-minded voices, it’s easy for stereotypes and misinformation to take hold. Some of the most dangerous content spreads this way, reinforcing prejudice and driving people further apart. The Brookings Institution identifies echo chambers as one of the four primary mechanisms through which racist misinformation proliferates on social media, alongside stereotyping, scapegoating, and allegations of reverse racism. That’s why it’s so important to help our kids recognize when they’re in an online bubble — and to teach them how to question what they see and hear.

As part of a two-phase framework, disinformation begins with seeding, where intentional falsehoods are planted, followed by the echoing phase, where participants cocreate the contentious narratives that disseminate disinformation. The second phase of echoing is especially troubling because, as the study argues, “disinformation encourages consumers to use any argumentative means at their disposal to win adversarial narratives, which defy fact-checking because identity cannot be proved wrong”. This resistance to fact-checking is a key feature of how echo chambers protect disinformation.

Moreover, the article explains that this phenomenon is not limited to falsehoods but can also involve “truths, half-truths, and value-laden judgments,” This is especially troubling as kids are not always honest. Kids are less likely to fact check their sources due to confirmation bias and these half truths serve to “exploit and amplify identity-driven controversies”. These complex layers of misinformation contribute to the creation of “adversarial narratives embedded in identity-driven controversies”. The flat Earth example discussed in the study provides a concrete case of how such misinformation circulates within echo chambers. Famous basketball player Kyrie Irving was someone who amplified this myth which kids directly look up to. Despite overwhelming scientific evidence to the contrary, participants in the flat Earth community reject counter arguments, engaging in “back-and-forth argumentation” that “solidifies viewpoints” and resists fact-checking. Some children might view this as who is a Kyrie supporter and who isn’t verus who is scientifically correct and who is not.

Furthermore, echo chambers contribute to the marginalization of radical views in traditional media and the rise of extreme ideologies online. Historically, when children would watch the news with their parents the media companies were consolidated around a few powerful outlets, leading to a narrow range of views being represented. While one could argue this suppresses other viewpoints, social media has platformed extremist thinking and disguised it as viewpoints to be accepted. I want to bring this back to the looksmaxing example as we teach our kids to love themselves as they are and social media has platformed a community that will promote steroid to developing teenagers as a way they can get taller and be more attractive.The acceptance of these putrid ideologies paired with echo chambers allow these extremists to disseminate targeted disinformation to audiences predisposed to accept it, fueling polarization and violence.

The spread of hate speech within these echo chambers is another dangerous consequence of their existence. A study analyzing over 32 million posts across multiple social networks found that extremists often dominate these spaces, escalating the diffusion of hate speech. As the study found, “hatemongers often dominate these echo chambers, escalating the diffusion of hate speech and fostering polarized communities.” By isolating users in these ideological silos, echo chambers facilitate the spread of radical and hateful rhetoric that not only reinforces discriminatory beliefs but also escalates the potential for real-world violence. This dynamic creates a dangerous feedback loop, in which online hate speech feeds offline violence, contributing to a cycle of social fragmentation and insecurity.

Echo chambers present a multifaceted problem for our blossoming youth. They create environments where misinformation and disinformation can spread unchecked, where confirmation bias reigns, and where extremist ideologies are allowed to flourish. The impact of echo chambers on children is profound: they perpetuate racism, increase the spread of hate speech, and escalate the potential for violence. This is a major issue as hateful thinking is taught at a young age and our adolescent years are where we learn the most. Addressing this issue is crucial for the health of public discourse and the future of children.

August 12, 2025 0

Back From the Dead: Why Putting Old Call of Duty Games on Game Pass Could Be a Dangerous Move

In a move that should have excited fans, Microsoft added Call of Duty: WWII to PC Game Pass recently. But within days, it was pulled. The reason? A full-blown hacker infestation that didn’t just ruin matches — it endangered people’s systems.

With Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard finally complete, fans have been buzzing with anticipation over what could come next for Call of Duty on Game Pass. The idea of booting up Modern Warfare 2, Black Ops II, or World at War with a Game Pass subscription sounds like a dream come true for longtime players — especially those who miss the golden era of split-screen trick shots and chaotic zombies lobbies.

There’s no doubt that Game Pass is becoming Microsoft’s flagship platform. Adding legacy Call of Duty titles makes perfect business sense. It re-engages lapsed players, boosts subscription value, and capitalizes on the franchise’s massive nostalgia factor. In fact, some of these older titles have already seen revived popularity in recent months, thanks to community-driven hype and modded servers.

But that dream is now running into reality — and it’s not pretty. Call of Duty: WWII was supposed to be a low-risk first step toward bringing back older entries. Instead, it’s become a warning sign of what happens when you bring old games with unpatched vulnerabilities into a modern platform with millions of users.

The situation with Call of Duty: WWII wasn’t just annoying—it was dangerous. The game became a hotbed for remote code execution (RCE) attacks, a type of exploit where malicious users can run code on another player’s machine simply by being in the same game session. In plain terms: someone halfway across the country could access your PC and manipulate it, just because you played a match with them.

And this isn’t limited to WWII. These vulnerabilities are deeply embedded in the IW engine — a codebase that has been the backbone of Call of Duty for nearly two decades. From Modern Warfare to Black Ops, from World at War to Advanced Warfare, many older titles run on versions of the same foundation. As one user put it bluntly:

“No it’s not [just WWII]. There is a way for people to access your PC just by connecting to you in a game. It affects every old COD because it uses the same engine. Including Quake.”

This isn’t just a cheat code arms race. It’s an infrastructure problem. Old games, especially those that haven’t received active support or security updates in years, become breeding grounds for exploits. These vulnerabilities weren’t designed for today’s online ecosystem — and malicious actors know it.

The text boxes, forced pop-ups, and PC manipulations players have documented aren’t theoretical threats. They’re real-time demonstrations of what happens when a popular platform like Game Pass intersects with forgotten game code and modern hacker communities.

The idea of revisiting classic Call of Duty titles on Game Pass sounds like a win. But nostalgia shouldn’t override basic digital safety. If Microsoft is serious about rolling out older Call of Duty games to millions of Game Pass subscribers, especially on PC, it must also be serious about securing them.

These aren’t harmless bugs. These are vulnerabilities that allow strangers to access players’ machines — not in theory, but in practice. Pulling WWII from the PC catalog was the right move. Now the real question is: will Microsoft fix the problem before they bring more of these games back?

The excitement around bringing legacy titles to Game Pass is real. But that excitement can’t blind us to the risks. Pushing these games live again without major investment in security patches or backend protections doesn’t just set up bad multiplayer experiences — it opens the door to real, widespread damage.

What Should Parents Know and Do?

Game Pass is a subscription service from Microsoft that gives users access to a large library of video games. Recently, there’s been talk of adding older Call of Duty titles to the platform. While these games haven’t been added yet, it’s important for parents to be aware of a potential risk tied to these older titles—especially on PC.

Many of these older games have serious security vulnerabilities that hackers can exploit. In some cases, just joining an online match could allow a bad actor to access another player’s computer. While this might sound extreme, gamers and cybersecurity experts have been sounding the alarm for years. And because these games are often sold cheaply at resale stores like GameStop or found for a few dollars online, they’re easy for kids to pick up without knowing the risks.

Here’s what parents should keep in mind:

Be cautious of older Call of Duty titles on PC, whether bought through Game Pass or secondhand. If vulnerabilities remain unpatched, they could expose your child’s device.
Ask your child what they’re playing and where they got it. If they mention downloading or buying older games, especially for PC, take a closer look.
Talk to your child about online safety in games, including avoiding sketchy servers and not sharing personal info in chats.
Use basic cybersecurity tools like firewalls and antivirus software to add protection in case something slips through.
Avoid giving kids admin access on their gaming computers, which can limit the damage if something does go wrong.

While these risks might not be well known, they’re real—and worth paying attention to. Staying aware can help you keep gaming safe and fun for your child.

Until there’s transparency and a clear security roadmap, older Call of Duty titles should remain offline — or at least off Game Pass. Gamers deserve better than to risk their systems for a shot of nostalgia.

July 30, 2025 0