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“I’m so grateful for this book! Dr. Uhls offers practical, anxiety-
reducing strategies for managing kids’ media use. As a mom,
she knows only too well that trying to block all access is futile.
Instead she helps parents ‘fight fun with fun’ by making screen
time happier and healthier.”
—Peggy Orenstein, author of
Cinderella Ate My Daughter
“Educators and parents need unbiased and realistic approaches
to the digital world so they can guide the next generation. In
Media Moms & Digital Dads, Dr. Uhls, a mom herself, gives us
a research-based resource, which is also filled with real-life take-
aways and actionable steps. I greatly enjoyed this smart and sen-
sible book. A must-read for every parent before they hand their
kids a digital device.”
—Willow Bay, director of the Annenberg
School of Journalism at the University of Southern
California and senior strategic advisor for the
Huffington Post
“Today, parents living in the digital age often feel as though they
have stepped ‘through the looking glass’! The digital landscape
is an ever-changing and confounding world in which to raise
and educate children. Educators and parents alike are struggling
with what to do with the numerous opportunities and chal-
lenges this digital age offers children in their homes and in their
schools. Yalda T. Uhls’ new book, based on her extensive research
and experience, makes her the perfect travel guide as parents all
over the world try to traverse this often bumpy terrain. This is
the guidebook you’ve been waiting for. Safe travels!”
—Reveta Bowers, head of school,
The Center for Early Education
“Media Moms & Digital Dads is a well-balanced, scientifically
grounded, and thoughtful roadmap of the often bewildering and
ever-changing digital world in which our kids are immersed.
Parents will find the author’s wise advice very helpful. “
—Laurence Steinberg, professor of Psychology,
Temple University, and author of Age of Opportunity:
Lessons from the New Science of Adolescence
“This is a fascinating and deeply practical look at how growing up
in this new and amazing digital age is impacting our kids. As the
parent of teenagers, I found Dr. Uhls’ analysis of how classrooms
and teaching have evolved particularly insightful. Each chapter ends
with a summary and some reasonable, actionable advice. Yalda’s
even-handed and open attitude toward all this technology in our
lives, recognizing it as a positive tool even while helping us navi-
gate the challenges, will be greatly appreciated by those who work
and educate using the tools digital media afford us.”
—Kristine Belson, president of Sony Pictures
Animation and Oscar-nominated producer on The Croods
“Many parents these days are frightened by the media’s frequent
depictions of ‘digital dangers’: aggression, sex, and cyberbully-
ing, to name a few. Media Moms & Digital Dads corrects many of
these myths regarding Internet usage and explains the truth about
digital technologies to parents in a clear and comprehensible way,
based on facts from research. Dr. Uhls provides reassuring proof
that will help many parents overcome their fears about raising well-
adjusted kids in the digital age . . . a “must-read” for parents who
care about facts and who raise their children in the digital age.”
—Professor David Smahel, Institute of Children,
Youth and Family Research Faculty of Social Studies,
Masaryk University and coauthor of Digital Youth:
The Role of Media in Development
“Dr. Yalda T Uhls is leading the way to help bridge the gap
between the digital natives (better known as kids) and the non-
digital natives (better known as parents).”
—Michelle Kydd-Lee, chief innovation officer for
Creative Artists Agency (CAA), the world’s leading
entertainment and sports agency
MEDIA
MOMS &
DIGITAL
DADS
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MEDIA
MOMS &
DIGITAL
DADS
A FAC T- N O T- F E A R
A P P R OAC H TO
PA R E N T I N G I N
T H E D I G I TA L AG E
YALDA T. UHLS, PhD
bibliomotion
inc.
First published by Bibliomotion, Inc.
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017, USA
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN, UK
Bibliomotion is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
Copyright © 2015 by Yalda T. Uhls
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any
manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher, except in
the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
ISBN-13: 978-1-62956-084-7 (pbk)
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Uhls, Yalda T.
Media moms & digital dads : a fact-not-fear approach to parenting in the digital
age / Yalda Uhls.
pages cm
Summary: “In Media Moms & Digital Dads, former film executive turned child
psychologist Yalda T. Uhls urges parents not to be afraid of the changing state of
media but to deal with the realities of how our kids engage with it”— Provided by
publisher.
ISBN 978-1-62956-084-7 (paperback) — ISBN 978-1-62956-085-4 (ebook) —
ISBN 978-1-62956-086-1 (enhanced ebook)
1. Parenting—Social aspects. 2. Social media. 3. Child rearing. I. Title. II. Title:
Media moms and digital dads.
HQ755.8.U35 2015
306.874 —dc23
2015021252
For Jim, Chloe, and Walker
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CONTENTS
Foreword by James P. Steyer, Founder and CEO,
Common Sense Media xiii
Introduction xvii
Part One: The Basics
Chapter 1 Parenting in the Digital Age 3
Chapter 2 Screen Time for Babies and Toddlers 21
Chapter 3 The Mobile Era 39
Chapter 4 The Digital Brain 57
Part Two: Social Media
Chapter 5 Social Media and Social Lives 79
Chapter 6 Fame, FOMO, and Selfies 103
xii Contents
Part Three: Learning
Chapter 7 Learning in the Digital Age 125
Chapter 8 Education in the Digital Age 145
Chapter 9 Video Games and Learning 165
Epilogue 185
Notes 191
References 209
Index 223
Acknowledgments 233
About the Author 237
FOREWORD
James P. Steyer
Founder and CEO
Common Sense Media
When I founded Common Sense Media a little more than a
decade ago, the world of media and technology was truly a dif-
ferent place. Back then, Facebook, YouTube, and iPhones did not
even exist. Our main focus was on providing trustworthy and
independent ratings and reviews for movies, television shows, and
video games. We had no idea that something called “apps” was
an entire category we would need to review. In 2015, we have
six categories of media content (movies, television, video games,
books, apps, and websites) and nearly 25,000 ratings. What a dif-
ference a decade makes.
Our media and technology universe is constantly evolving.
Today, kids look at screens 24–7, both at home and at school. Par-
ents are overwhelmed and need guidance. Educators work hard
to keep up with the needs of their students. Put simply, we live in
a fundamentally new environment, which is affecting our chil-
dren’s social, emotional, physical, and cognitive development in
myriad and impactful ways.
Some people believe that media and technology are destroy-
ing childhood, while others want kids in diapers to have their
own tablets. Unfortunately, many parental assumptions about
how media affect their kids are ill informed, with too much mis-
information fueling fears. This is why we must look to facts to
xiv Foreword
determine what the true effects are of this generation’s 24–7 con-
nections to the digital world. It goes without saying that we need
common sense to help us find the way.
I first met my colleague Yalda T. Uhls when she came to work
for Common Sense Media in 2011. Her unique skill set—she’s
a former storyteller and producer turned academic—proved to
be a great asset for our team. As Yalda worked to help build our
Los Angeles office, she also finished her doctoral work, receiving
awards and national press recognition for her important research
in the field.
During this time, Yalda became an expert at translating sci-
ence into useful knowledge and takeaways for parents, organiza-
tions, and educators, after using the unique assets and materials of
Common Sense Media. It turned out that her many years learn-
ing the art of storytelling, along with her expertise in science
and research, gave her a realistic and relevant outlook on kids’
media. When she told me she was writing this book, one that
would delve into the extensive body of social science research at
the intersection of media, children, and development, I knew it
would be a success.
Yalda’s passion to help parents navigate the digital world clearly
stems from her experiences as the mom of two children. And as a
former movie executive, she is passionate about the potential for
media to inspire and engage kids. Yet she believes, as do I, that
content creators have a deep responsibility to the children who
watch what they create.
Now is the time to answer the essential question of whether
childhood is changing for the worse or for the better in our dig-
ital world . . . and if so, how? Parents can and must adapt to help
their children thrive in the digital age. As a mother, a research
psychologist, and a storyteller, Yalda has a unique background
and skill set to help provide many of these answers
Quite simply, Media Moms & Digital Dads is an excellent
Foreword xv
resource for anyone looking to understand exactly how the dig-
ital world affects childhood. It can be essential reading for parents
and educators looking for a straightforward book that is balanced
in perspective and grounded in facts and research. From ana-
lyzing how media affects the brain to determining whether all
the likes and “selfies” impact your child’s identity development,
Yalda gives you a clear picture of interactive technology and dig-
ital learning in this remarkable new media age.
Get the facts you need with this book. You will learn a lot,
and more importantly . . . so will your children.
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INTRODUCTION
Near the end of the nineteenth century, a new medium was
unleashed upon the world. Children took to it like ducks to water,
and this terrified adults. Young people everywhere spent hours
on end immersed, while simultaneously ignoring the grown-ups
in their lives. Understandably, parents were alarmed and worried
that this new medium and its racy content were ruining young
minds.
When I ask parents to guess what this medium was, they usu-
ally presume it was the radio or the telephone. When I tell them it
was the mass-market novel, jaws drop in disbelief.1
In the late 1800s, parents were worried that the next genera-
tion was going to hell in a handbasket, thanks to Jane Austen and
other popular novelists such as Susan Warner.* In their minds,
the excessive consumption of romantic novels by children was
frightening; and because of new technology, which had low-
ered the costs of print production, dime novels were affordable
for nearly every youth. Children shared the racy content and
swooned in delight. Parents could not control the rapid dissemi-
nation of these popular media.
The substance of the novels was considered risqué, and teen-
agers, doing what they always do, rebelled by reading as much as
they could get away with. The adult population lamented that
this new medium was a frivolous time waster, and that youth
* Fun fact: Jo in Little Women is obsessed with reading Susan Warner’s novel The
Wide, Wide World.
