Put Down the Phone

It is a commonly held assumption that the world is going straight to hell. Turn on the news, pick up a newspaper, or (worst) unlock your smartphone and you’ll be told in no uncertain terms just how bad and out of control everything is. While there is obviously evil in the world and a litany of social ills that plague our society just like every society that has preceded it, there is a far more insidious factor working on each and every one of our psyches all the time.

Last year, Netflix released a documentary entitled, “The Social Dilemma,” which explores the addictive algorithms employed to keep users mentally and emotionally attached to their smartphones and computers. One of the major revelations of the film was that algorithms used by social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube serve you content most likely to increase your engagement and increase your time on the platform. Many users (myself included) assumed that the algorithms would serve us content that we agreed with, but often content we agree with doesn’t increase our engagement – especially if (like me) the user is argumentative and enjoys delving into contentious debates. In my case, Facebook will actually serve me more content from sources that offend me rather than sources that make me happy because I was more likely to engage with the bad stuff. Many (if not most) of us are like this. A media source (especially ones we agree with) serves us a headline designed to get under our skin, we engage with it, and the social media algorithm notices this and serves us more attention-grabbing, catastrophized content to keep us coming back.

The problem for many users is that this recursion of negativity creates a false sense of the world in our minds. This false world is one where everything is bad and there is no end to the rank evil we are witness to. Go back just a few decades, and while manifest evil in the world was in many ways worse, we didn’t see it all the time. We didn’t experience it psychologically. We didn’t have devices in our pockets that promised peace through information and yet deliver mostly heartache and helplessness. Much like we were conditioned to turn to the government “experts” for the information and assurance we craved to not feel powerless during the coronavirus panic, we are conditioned to turn to our devices and the media headlines they give us to not feel powerless over the seemingly endless stream of awful that our world has apparently become.

Of course, the funny thing is that (much like the coronavirus) the reality of our worlds bears little resemblance to the apocalyptic nightmare that our phones tell us is the world has become. In our local neighborhoods, bad things happen from time to time, but it’s generally a far cry from the nonstop deluge of horribleness we are meant to believe is at our doorstep.

So how do we get some sense of balance back? First, realize that the device in your hand is the gateway for the malaise and restlessness that pervades your existence. Simply put, it is designed to keep you unhappy. Even if you realize this, there will still be a tendency to rely on it for a feeling of control. We all understand instinctively that information is power, and we are all too quick to consume as much information as possible so that we feel in control. The problem of course is that very little of what we read is something we can act on. Paradoxically this creates a feeling of being out of control. Being outraged all the time at things you can’t control is a recipe for depression.

We all need to simply put down the phone. We need to place restrictions on our device use. Pick a few trusted information sources and resist the urge to deep dive for more outrageous stories and headlines. Unless you run some sort of media outlet, it doesn’t have to be your job to wallow through the muck of online awfulness all the time. Pick news sources that balance attention-grabbing headlines with positive and lighter stories – not everything in life has to be live or die! Your sense of control and balance will return through your control over your information intake and your mature acceptance of the fact that you are in control of very little of what actually goes on in the world. Trust that God is sovereign and you are not. Be okay with not knowing – you get no points for being the first to be outraged.

You may ask, “Are you encouraging me to not read websites like this one as much?” Yes, please. We serve up a pretty consistent stream of outrage and awfulness, but most of it can wait. You don’t need to see it the moment it arrives.