Taylor Lorenz on the moral panic around kids and phones, and how she logs 17 hours of screen time

The transition toward mandatory digital identity verification represents a significant, bipartisan threat to online anonymity and free expression. This shift, often framed as a necessary measure to protect children from harmful content, mirrors authoritarian surveillance models and risks broader censorship of journalistic and marginalized voices. Rather than supporting top-down restrictions, the focus should shift toward regulating corporate business models and fostering decentralized, federated technology. While critics often frame social media as the primary driver of youth mental health crises, experts argue these claims are largely unsubstantiated and function as moral panics. Embracing a tech-forward future—including open-source AI—offers a more productive path than reactionary attempts to restrict digital access. Independent journalists must navigate this volatile information ecosystem, sometimes employing provocative tactics to secure the attention necessary to promote more nuanced, data-driven policy discussions.