More please: Baptist Press plugs screens culture research

Plus, a horrifying social-media case study from ScreenStrong (let us attend)

It’s the response that I hear more than any other when I speak to parents, pastors, teachers and counselors about today’s crisis with smartphones and social media.

Basically this: What can I do? It’s too late, in our home?

Every now and then, someone will add: What are the most important steps that I can take to protect my kids? What are the essentials that I need to know?

This brings me to important posts from mainstream organizations about this topic. One is from Baptist Press, pointing readers to new poll data from the Pew Research Center. The other is a horrifying case study from Melanie Hempe of the Be ScreenStrong project on Substack.

The headline at Baptist Press: “More teens see the negatives of social media, but not ready to quit just yet.”

The key word, of course, is “YET.”

What happens if “YET” prevents all attempts to change screens-culture realities in Christian homes? This topic is at the heart of what we do here at Rational Sheep. Thus, I am opening up this Wednesday think piece to all readers.

This brings us to the story of Walker Montgomery, a high-school sophomore from a solid Christian family. Hempe — in the “No Child Is Immune from Sextortion — Even Yours” post — tells the story of Walker’s death, with details provided by his family (click here for a ScreenStrong podcast with his father, Brian Montgomery). Start here:

By all accounts, Walker was a hard-working kid, loved by his peers and his community, with no history of depression or anxiety. And yet, he took his own life.

How did that happen? According to Brian, it began like any other night. Walker came home from football practice and had dinner with his family — both of which are incredibly protective factors for teens. Then he went to his room — with his phone.

That night, Walker was contacted by an attractive “young girl” who said she knew some of his friends. She said she was interested in getting to know him and talked him into an online encounter of a sexual nature. He didn’t know he was being filmed.

In a matter of minutes, he was hit with waves of messages threatening to send the video to “everybody in your Instagram list.” Walker begged for mercy, but the team harassing him mentioned contacting his mother. He threatened to kill himself, which drew this response: “Go ahead because you're already dead anyway.”

Walker found a gun in the family’s safe. His parents never had a chance to talk with him, since this entire online tragedy unfolded in the dead of night behind the closed door of his bedroom.

What does Brian Montgomery want other parents to know? Here are three big ideas:

(1) The best way to prevent sextortion is to not allow social media in the first place. Brian Montgomery: “If Walker had not had social media, if he had not had access to his phone, we wouldn't be in the situation.”

(2) Children and teens should never have a device in a private space like a bedroom. Brian Montgomery urges parents to say: “Don't think this phone is a private place for you. It's not. It's my phone. I pay the bill. I am your parent, and I'm gonna do my job.”

(3) The dangers of the virtual world are real, and no child is immune.

Enough said.

This leads me to the Baptist Press report, which — to be blunt — is important because it helps validate emerging research to readers who are parents, pastors, teachers and counselors.

We need more reports of this kind in media outlets operated by major denominations, parachurch groups and local congregations. Here is the top of that BP story:

Although a recent Pew Research study says more teens are becoming aware of the negative effects of social media, that doesn’t mean they’re ready for anything resembling a large-scale break from it.

Released last week, the study says nearly half (48 percent) of teens say social media sites have a mostly negative effect on peers, an increase from 32 percent who said so in 2022. The increase could be linked to a focus on mental health among teens, who have turned to platforms like TikTok for information on the subject.

The 16-point swing in such a short time toward seeing social media as a negative influence on mental health may lead to the conclusion that teens are on the cusp of a movement away from it. However, the same study also revealed that only 14 percent of teens felt social media affected them personally in a negative way.

In other words, it’s everyone else’s problem.

Yes, it was Walker Montgomery’s problem. That’s all.

For input, Baptist Press turned to Chris Martin of Moody Global media, author of “The Wolf in Their Pockets: 13 Ways the Social Internet Threatens the People You Lead.” Martin noted:

“I have found what teenagers say about their social media usage and their actual practices to be at odds. … People engage in habits and substances they think are bad for them because they are afraid of what may happen if they stop,” said Martin.

Here’s more from Zac Workun of Lifeway, a student ministry specialist:

“It’s not going away,” Workun said. “Teens may not be aspiring to be the influencers we thought they would, but TikTok and YouTube have become their key media platforms for learning about the world.” …

Teens’ mixed feelings about the negative effects of social media may be the reason flip phones have seen a resurgence, “but they’re probably not going to quit it.”

So, “It’s not going away.” And “they’re probably not going to quit it.”

True, that. Which means this issue is not going away — for everyone. That includes parents in good, safe Christian homes. Like the home in which Walker Montgomery lived, behind his bedroom door.

I’ll end with a familiar Rational Sheep question: Has anyone heard about these issues in sermons, religious education or during retreats for the faithful?

This issue isn’t going away, for pastors and the seminary educators who train them.

Let us attend.