THINKING
Tanya writes regularly on digital wellbeing, digital detox, Big Tech, screen-life balance, cybersafety, persuasive tech, the attention economy and other topical issues related to the digital world.
Was Trump’s Ban Peak Twitter?
Donald Trump’s immense influence was abruptly curtailed on a single day in January 2021. But that day was not the 20th.
Disinformation on a global scale
The manipulation of public views via social media will not stop when Trump leaves office. Disinformation is now spread on a global scale.
The dangers of anti-vax conspiracies
With the release of Covid-19 vaccines, there has been a steep rise in dangerous anti-vax conspiracies. Social media platforms must do more.
2020: The TikTok Election
With 61% of Gen Z saying social media is their primary daily news source, and many admitting "TikTok definitely impacted my vote", TikTok has become one of the major forces at play in the 2020 US election. Of course, social media companies have been having an...
What to do if friends and family have fallen for an internet conspiracy
As of 2019, 60% of Britons have believed at least one conspiracy theory about how our country is governed, or about the credibility of information they receive with 77% of UK adults trusting journalists "not much" or "not at all". However, family and friends are...
Reviewing The Social Dilemma
New on Netflix comes The Social Dilemma, a powerful documentary on our relationship with the digital world. Through a combination of interviews with Silicon Valley innovators and a fictionalised family who experience the products created, this film highlights the...
Why is Facebook offering to pay people to log off during the US Elections?
Intriguing screenshots, posted online by a Washington Post reporter this week, revealed an in-app pop-up from Instagram asking users to choose how much they'd be willing to receive to deactivate their account ahead of the US Election. Sums suggested for consideration...
What to tell children about data privacy as they go back to school
Since the advent of the internet parents have been wary of the safety of their children online, and not without reason. However, nefarious individuals hiding in chat rooms are no longer the only threat. Advice to children must now stretch beyond "don't talk to...
Screen time tips before the big return to school
We're currently in a heatwave in the UK, the closing days of what feels like a long endless summer. But schools and colleges will be returning in a matter of weeks. Children and young people who've been in lockdown for months are gearing up to be getting back to some...
BOOKS
Tanya is the author of three books on our complicated relationship with technology:
‘My Brain Has Too Many Tabs Open’, ‘Off.’ and ‘Stop Staring at Screens’ are all out now.
My Brain Has Too Many Tabs Open
“Highly readable…attainable and realistic ways to reduce technology use and alleviate the burdens it can place on us as individuals and on our relationships.”
OFF: Your Digital Detox for a Better Life
"She presents simple ideas alongside practical suggestions for how to implement them - leaving you inspired and motivated by the end."
Stop Staring at Screens!
"Perhaps the best compliment I can pay this is that as soon as I started reading this, my 13-year-old son started looking over my shoulder, and in short order said, "I want to read this as soon as you're done. And I want to do this."