Shows
Doing Tech RightSkin Gambling and Financial Scams Targeting Teens: with Vicki ShotboltUnderstanding and Combatting Online Financial Scams Targeting Teens | With Vicki ShotboltIn this episode, we speak with Vicki Shotbolt, Founder and CEO of the UK-based organization Parent Zone.Vicki discusses the pressing issues surrounding online financial scams targeting British teens and young people. We delve into various forms of digital financial complexities, including skin gambling, identity theft, and money muling.Vicki also provides practical advice for parents and young people on recognizing and recovering from scams. The conversation emphasizes the importance of financial literacy, open communication, and proactive measures to safeguard young people in...
2025-10-2427 min
Tech Shock - from Parent Zone10. Everyday Digital – a media literacy programme that worksMedia literacy. It’s at the core of a three-year strategy from Ofcom, featured in DSIT’s ‘Digital Inclusion Action Plan’ and looks set to make more than just a fleeting appearance in the reviewed curriculum this autumn. It’s also one means of combating mis- and disinformation as well as online financial harms and misogyny. In short, it’s being recognised by many – and rightly so – as essential.Designed to build critical media literacy skills across UK communities, Everyday Digital is a national media literacy programme from Parent Zone and originally funded by DSIT. The programme he...
2025-07-2328 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone9. EdTech: “Big Tech in a school uniform”?After a shift to online learning during COVID-19, EdTech – everything from digital whiteboards and eBooks to Google Classroom and virtual reality equipment – is an industry that’s gone from strength to strength in terms of size, scope and profitability.But as the UK is beginning to see a narrative form around the virtues of a ‘screen free’ childhood and, further abroad, countries like Sweden move back to more ‘traditional’ methods of teaching, many parents are left questioning the current use of EdTech and its effect on their children.To help understand how we should approach the growing pr...
2025-06-0438 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone8. Violence against women and girls: what’s needed for change?Easily accessed tech like generative AI can facilitate the nudification of another's images, platforms’ hate speech policies around gender are suddenly being watered-down, and misogynistic content remains amplified (and deeply profitable) for those that peddle it. The need to respond to online violence against women and girls is obvious. But where does the solution lie? Can cyberflashing and deepfake offences dissuade people who think it's ‘fine’ to objectify women? Should victims be expected to endlessly use online safety tools to deal with harassment? And can increasing the media literacy levels of some young men really unravel a wider c...
2025-05-2132 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone7. Is tech destroying our attention spans?In the ‘information age’ it’s easy to find any number of resources and strong opinions. This makes it more crucial than ever that we're able to filter out the noise and access evidence and information that's of a high standard and digestible.As heated debates around tech continue – including its impact on attention spans and social media ‘addiction’ – what does the research actually say, and how can we best access it?In this episode, Vicki is joined by researcher, popular science author and Professor of Cognitive Psychology at Utrecht University, Stefan Van der Stigchel to help answer...
2025-05-0738 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone6. Family vlogging, young people’s perspectives and the response ‘across the pond’Awareness of emerging harms gradually develops and debates around smartphone bans and social media restrictions for children are ongoing. At the same time, the series 'Adolescence' has been turning these sorts of conversations national. With all this in mind, are we doing enough to understand the lived experiences and perspectives of young people themselves? VoiceBox is an organisation who help do just that – giving young people around the world a platform to have their say on what impacts them most, and briefing other organisations on insights and trends.In this episode, dir...
2025-04-1629 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone5. What's next for the Online Safety Act?With Ofcom's duties and guidance around illegal harms and content, services’ transparency, the safety of women and girls, as well as the protection of children all being published in 2025, it’s undoubtedly an important year for the implementation of the Online Safety Act.But with geopolitics becoming more unstable, tech companies pivoting in controversial ways – including Meta rewriting its policies on ‘hateful conduct’ and removing fact-checkers – and tech like generative AI becoming part of daily life, we have to ask: is the Act too vulnerable to external changes, and can it actually regulate the online world?The Onli...
2025-04-0241 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone4. Schools and emerging tech: a new era of sexual harassment and abuse?As both the sophistication and accessibility of AI is on the up, the ease in which someone can create and share realistic deepfakes involving ‘non-consensual intimate images’ increases also. Worryingly, schools and education settings aren't exempt from this trend.To add to this, UCL’s Institute of Education found that – of young people who have experienced this sort of image-based sexual harassment – only 2% reported it to their school.Kristin Woelfel is policy counsel at the Centre for Democracy and Technology. She’s also co-author of a 2024 report which, through a large-scale poll of students, teachers and parents...
2025-03-1931 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone3. Understanding ‘good enough’ parenting and toddlers' tech useResearch shows that consistent, authoritative at-home parenting impacts children’s learning and educational outcomes. At times though, a prevailing culture within education can mean parents receive insufficient support, and are even unfairly labelled and criticised. Similarly, the false narrative that very young children don’t use digital technology can be another obstacle to understanding not just the nature of their tech use, but also its possible benefits when it comes to learning and development. In episode three of season 10, Vicki is joined by Janet Goodall – researcher and Professor of Education at Swansea University’s School of Social...
2025-03-0534 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone2. Early years digital media literacy: new report highlights significant gapsChildren grow up surrounded by technology – engaging with it from birth. But how do we help parents with information, evidence-based advice and support so that those early interactions can lay the foundations for positive engagement as children grow?Supported by the Nuffield Foundation, the ‘Early years digital media literacy review’ is a new report from Parent Zone. It scopes out existing – or without giving too much away, the absence of – early years interventions: the sorts of initiatives that could foster both digital media literacy and the benefits of tech.To help unpack the findings of this resea...
2025-02-1931 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone1. Time for a change? Talking Child Financial Harms with Adam GrovesThe Tech Shock podcast hits double digits as it returns for its 10th season. As always, Vicki will be joined this season by a whole host of expert guests to talk all things tech, as well as taking a deep dive into new research by Parent Zone.Expect fascinating discussions around AI-generated sexual harassment in schools; ‘good enough’ parenting; violence against women and girls; and some current pros and pitfalls of the Online Safety Act. In this episode Nominet’s social impact lead, Adam Groves, joins Vicki to kick off season 10. They’ll be explor...
2025-02-1237 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone7. Season round-up with VoiceBox’s Natalie FoosVoiceBox is an organisation that specialises in youth content and consultation – showcasing the talent of young creators globally. They also ensure that the youth perspective is heard through their independent research and work with tech firms, government bodies and other decision-makers.After attending the WeProtect global summit in Abu Dhabi this December, VoiceBox director Natalie Foos joins Vicki for the final episode of season nine. Together they unpack the recent WeProtect event, discuss some of VoiceBox’s exciting past (and future) work, and offer up some notable moments from this season of Tech Shock.Talking poin...
2024-12-1934 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone6. Digital resilience, wellbeing and the online worldDigital resilience involves understanding possible risks online, knowing where to get help and having the support to recover when things go wrong, and learning from experiences.But some emerging harms can begin to shift online safety discussions away from digital resilience and more towards bans, regulation and abstinence – particularly when harms are considered to severely affect wellbeing and mental health. In this episode, Vicki is joined by professor of Human Behaviour and Technology at the University of Oxford, Andy Przybylski. They discuss the relevance of digital resilience today as well as what research actually say...
2024-12-1742 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone5. AI’s role in mental health support?AI chatbots are becoming increasingly sophisticated in how they interact with users. The insights afforded by AI tools can also be used to streamline workflows and improve efficiency across a range of organisations and their services.With the NHS reporting that one in five children and young people in England had a ‘probable mental disorder’ in 2023, have we reached a point where AI innovations could – or should – be used to help cope with a seemingly ever-growing demand for support?The Mix is one example of a youth advice and support service who have previously integrated AI into...
2024-12-1136 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone4. From child rights to regulation: are we in a good place?As the online world continues to develop, possible risks and harms do too. Business models can encourage the promotion of harmful content via algorithms, and children’s data is too often viewed as a commodity. Often, legislation is left scrambling to keep up with tech – and even when it’s successfully passed, evidence ‘supporting’ it can be conflicting (or simply lacking). In-between all this, the rights of children can be sidelined or infringed upon. But are we yet in a good place for tackling some of these challenges? And if not, where next? Helping Vick...
2024-12-0437 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone3. Digital parenting and monitoring technologyThe use of technology to assist with parenting is something that’s becoming a social norm. It's easy to understand why: parents want to know what their children are doing online, where they are when they're out of sight and what digital content they're being exposed to. Knowing your child is safe is the most fundamental of all parenting priorities. But digital parenting, particularly when it involves monitoring technology, raises questions around children’s rights to privacy. This use of technology may also (somewhat counterintuitively) impact family dynamics and wellbeing in negative ways. Far from supporting conversations it mi...
2024-11-2039 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone2. Mark Weinstein, privacy, anonymity and surveillance capitalismSurveillance capitalism – the gathering, analysis and use of personal information to influence people and sell things – arguably requires losses in (or infringements on) privacy to work best. At the same time, anonymity online can bring its own risks: it may facilitate trolling as well as the spread of mis- and disinformation. User anonymity might also undermine age restrictions on online platforms and content. In this episode, Vicki is joined by privacy advocate and author Mark Weinstein to discuss this possible conflict between privacy and anonymity, as well as user IDs and user data in the age of...
2024-11-1348 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone1. The Annual Cyber Survey with Adrienne KatzTech Shock returns for its 9th season and we invite a range of expert guests to explore the tech landscape post-Online Safety Act – as well as emerging trends and possible harms.Our first guest this season is director of Youthworks Adrienne Katz. She joins Vicki to unpack the findings from Youthwork’s Annual Cyber Survey, which, having run since 2008, aims to capture just what it’s like for young people growing up and living in the online world. Talking points:to what extent can we really attribute a rise in mental health issues to tech us...
2024-11-0637 min
Made by Mammas: The PodcastFriday Q&A on Navigating Social Media With Kids - Everything You Need To Know with Tara Hopkins & Vicki Shotbolt This week, Zoe and Georgia get real about their journeys with raising kids in the ever-changing digital world. They’re joined by Instagram’s Tara Hopkins and ParentZone’s Vicki Shotbolt, who educate and spill the tea on everything from social media safety hacks to the ins and outs of parental controls when it comes to social media. This Family Centre for parents provides more information on how to set up the supervision tools that were discussed during the episode.Listen by clicking ‘Play’, subscribe or follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Acast, and please...
2024-10-1146 minTech Shock - from Parent ZoneSmartphone bans: what are young people saying?Part two of this Tech Shock special discusses the possibility – and possible impact – of a smartphone ban for under-16s. Having previously heard from parents, this week Vicki is joined by Anna Lindsay from youth-content platform VoiceBox to get a measure of what young people themselves think about the issue. Talking points:Can you build resilience in an ecosystem of bans and prohibitions?Are we consulting young people enough on legislation that impacts them? Could – or should – this process be more collaborative? What do young people feel they would lose if using smartphones were no longer a...
2024-05-2028 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone7. Season roundup, with VoiceBoxNatalie Foos, director of the youth content platform VoiceBox joins Vicki to provide some young people’s perspectives on the hot (or tricky) topics from Tech Shock's season 8. Talking points:In a year where half the world could be at the polls, how equipped are young people to avoid disinformation? As social platforms and online games are increasingly built to engage and retain, how autonomous can young users feel online? With tech developments moving so fast, do young people feel like regulation is an impossibility?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follo...
2024-04-0133 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone1. New technologies, new worries?In the first episode of a new series, Vicki and Geraldine take a look at the issues that will be looming large in tech for families over the coming months. We cover the metaverse - or, as Vicki prefers to call it, online immersive experiences; we consider how much money children are spending, making, and losing online; and we look at the implications of AI for children’s privacy.Talking points:Is ‘remember to turn on your boundary settings’ about to become every parent’s mantra?Are financial harms to children online a problem hiding in plain si...
2023-10-1633 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone1. Lynn PerryAs the Online Safety Bill returns to parliament, Vicki and Geraldine talk to the CEO of Barnardo’s, which supports many of Britain’s most vulnerable children, about how much difference it could make.Talking points:What would the world have looked like if previous policies to intervene early in children’s lives - like Sure Start - had continued at the same level?Can regulation make the internet safer for vulnerable children without closing the doors on children’s exploration and expression online?Why should age assurance for pornography be fast-tracked?Tech Shock is a Parent...
2023-02-0646 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone12. Return of the Online Safety BillAs a revised Bill comes back to parliament under a new-look government, Vicki and Geraldine discuss what’s changed, and whether it’s for better or worse.Talking points:Where are we?The ’triple shield’ - better than ‘legal but harmful'?Can end-to-end encrypted messages ever be scanned for child sexual abuse material and terrorism without compromising privacy?The Bill depends heavily on age assurance tools. How long is it going to take to get public buy-in?Can you really protect children online if the internet remains a haven for adult hate speech and toxic content
2022-12-1943 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone11. Kat DixonVicki and Geraldine talk to Kat Dixon, who spent the summer of 2022 exploring the ways data poverty damages people’s ability to live fully, as well as a host of really exciting local initiatives to counteract it.Talking points:Why you don’t have to be poor to experience data poverty.Solutions to data poverty exist, but some are much less desirable than others. What makes the difference?How far could a new national strategy for solving data poverty help with the UK’s crisis of low productivity?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow...
2022-12-1244 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone10. Simeon YatesVicki and Geraldine talk to the Professor of Digital Culture at the University of Liverpool about why Britain has too narrow a view of digital literacy - and a quite shocking amount of digital illiteracy.Talking points:Why media literacy means understanding what data’s being collected about you and why.Not everyone’s workplace requires digital skills. How can adults stay up to date?Why are digital skills seen as something that’s good for us, rather than something that’s fun?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media fo...
2022-12-0543 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone9. Natalia KucirkovaVicki and Geraldine talk to the Professor of reading and children’s development at the Open University, an expert on children’s digital books. Are digital books the future of children’s reading?- Can digital books appeal to a wider range of children than print books?- Digital books have the potential to unlock the imagination and children’s creativity. Are they living up to their promise?- There is an overlap between children’s digital books and games. Could books go the way of gaming and treat children as consume...
2022-11-2841 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone8. Ofcom’s Anna-Sophie Harling and Caroline CasonVicki and Geraldine talk to Ofcom about regulating the internet. What have we learnt so far?Talking points:Why do parents help their children to dodge the system?Can you keep legal but harmful content and protect children?What can we learn from Ofcom’s regulation of video sharing platforms, which is already up and running?Link to the Ofcom blog: How old is your child online?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in...
2022-11-2149 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone7. Aiman El AmanVicki and Geraldine talk to a psychiatrist from Kingston University who studies the relationship between children’s vulnerability and their likelihood of encountering online harm.Talking points:Which types of vulnerability predict which harms?Why is better mental health the key to breaking the link between vulnerability and online harm?Why are rules not very useful in helping children to avoid online risk?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki Sh...
2022-11-1434 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone6. Kira AllmanVicki and Geraldine talk to digital inequalities expert Kira Allman, recently appointed Senior Digital Policy Officer at Manchester City Council, about why we so often get ‘the digital divide’ wrong, why thinking of digital infrastructure as being like water is helpful, and the prospects for AI that works for human beings.Talking points:What’s the point of local digital policies when the internet is global?Why the digital divide is a rubbish concept.How exclusion is baked into technology.Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the la...
2022-11-071h 00Tech Shock - from Parent Zone5. Gay and Roxy LongworthVicki and Geraldine talk to a mother and daughter, authors of a new book, When You Lose It, about the devastating consequences they suffered when Roxy was bullied into sending nudes to older boys at school. The pair are brutally honest about what happened, which included Roxy's being sectioned with psychosis. Despite their ordeal, the story is an uplifting one because it shows how resilient young people and families can be.Talking points:Is the whole business of sending nudes fundamentally misogynistic?How do parents deal with situations where children have done something they know their...
2022-10-3138 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone4. Conference!Vicki and Geraldine look back at Digital Families 2022, held live at the RSA and streamed online, talking through speaker insights and their fave bits.Talking points:Media literacy and regulation: where does the balance lie between providers and users for safety and thriving online?Why pornography is extreme surveillance capitalism.How children’s playgrounds are becoming rapaciously commercial.Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki Shotbolt. Tech Sh...
2022-10-2445 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone3. Sam GilbertVicki and Geraldine talk to the expert on Crypto, Web 3 and the Metaverse about what the future is going to look like - and learn it might involve child labour.Talking points:Should Parent Zone be getting into Crypto?What are the online harms of the future web?Is the future of the web the financialisation of all our relationships?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki Shotbolt. Tech Shock...
2022-10-1735 min
Podcasting Playbook – by PineappleMini Episode: “What Gets You Up In The Morning?” – with Parent Zone's Vicki ShotboltIn this mini episode, Pineapple Founder and Director Juliette chats to Vicki about her incredible business, and our work together on the ‘Tech Shock’ podcast.
Vicki is the founder and CEO of Parent Zone, a service providing advice, knowledge and support to shape the best possible future for children, as they embrace the online world. She is the host of ‘Tech Shock’ podcast with her colleague Geraldine – and has spent over 20 years working in the family and parenting sector. She is also on the executive board of the UK Council on Child Internet Safety.
Each episode, we’re giving...
2022-10-1307 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone2. Callum HoodVicki and Geraldine talk to Callum Hood, Head of Research at the Center for Countering Digital Hate, about their recently published report on incels.Talking points:How is incel culture linked to body image and unemployment support for young men?How is the demeaning of older women is associated with child sexual abuse?How to explain the paradox that incel communities can be inventive and creative yet utterly nihilistic?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families...
2022-10-1052 minPodcasting Playbook – by Pineapple“What Gets You Up In The Morning?” – with Parent Zone's Vicki ShotboltPineapple Founder and Director Juliette chats to Vicki about her incredible business, and our work together on the ‘Tech Shock’ podcast.
Vicki is the founder and CEO of Parent Zone, a service providing advice, knowledge and support to shape the best possible future for children, as they embrace the online world. She is the host of ‘Tech Shock’ podcast with her colleague Geraldine – and has spent over 20 years working in the family and parenting sector. She is also on the executive board of the UK Council on Child Internet Safety.
Each episode, we’re giving you tips, tricks, ideas a...
2022-10-0918 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone1. Damon de IonnoVicki and Geraldine talk to the Managing Director of Revealing Reality, the organisation researching technology, media and online harms for the DCMS, Ofcom and others. They cover the sending and sharing of nude images, the possible ditching of ‘legal but harmful’ from the Online Safety Bill, and the shortcomings of age assurance.Talking points:How has sending nude images become both routine and a form of abuse?Sex positivity: an aspect of privilege?Why boys and girls have different assumptions about sharing nude images.Should ‘legal but harmful’ be replaced by ideas about context and volu...
2022-10-0348 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone16. Season roundupVicki and Geraldine look back on the latest Tech Shock season and talk about how its themes intersect with Parent Zone’s wider work.Talking points:Why has media literacy become the buzzword of the moment?Are we about to see the end of children freely accessing hardcore pornogoraphy?Does gaming need its own regulator?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki Shotbolt. Tech Shock is produced and edited by Ti...
2022-05-2334 min
Tech Policy LeadersVicki Shotbolt & Geraldine Bedell: Global Tech Policy and Media Literacy for FamiliesToday’s global economy has made it easier than ever to explore opportunities and access resources. However, this comes with the challenge of understanding how these new markets and opportunities can be beneficial or harmful to your family. Technology is a powerful tool that can help you stay informed, connected, and entertained wherever you are in the world. As content from different countries and cultures becomes more accessible, it’s important for parents and caregivers to learn about new media so they can make informed decisions about what content is appropriate for their family. Vicki Shotbolt @VS...
2022-05-1623 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone15. Faith RogowVicki and Geraldine talk to the leading expert on media literacy about the need to make the very youngest children aware of how the digital world works.Talking points:Why start media literacy before children can even read?How do we make young children question information without making them suspicious of the world around them?Functional illiteracy has remained stubbornly high in the UK for decades - can media literacy do better?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families...
2022-05-1656 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone14. Heather WardleVicki and Geraldine talk to a leading researcher about whether children are being groomed to gamble.Talking points:Why has gambling become so important to gaming?Are gambling laws inadequate for the age of the internet?Does exposing children to online gambling mean more problem gamblers in future?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki Shotbolt. Tech Shock is produced and edited by Tim Malster.wwwTwitter
2022-05-0943 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone13. Elly HansonVicki and Geraldine talk to a leading researcher into the effects of pornography about how some of the most sophisticated technology companies on the planet are manipulating human sexuality for profit.Talking points: Do parents underestimate the scale and nature of the pornography children are seeing?Are boys and girls affected equally?Why is liberal vs conservative or sex-positive vs censorship now an inadequate way of looking at the pornography debate?How is pornography increasing bad behaviour in the workplace?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all t...
2022-05-0245 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone12. John CarrVicki and Geraldine talk to John Carr, writer, campaigner and adviser to charities and governments, about whether the UK is finally about to see laws to stop children accessing online pornography.Talking points: Why has the government been so slow about stopping children accessing pornography online?Is the Online Safety Bill going to protect children effectively?Is proposed end-to-end encryption of major messaging services going to hide child sexual exploitation and abuse?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families t...
2022-04-2540 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone11. Marc Feldman and Natalie FoosAs Voice Box publishes a report on Munchausen Syndrome by Internet, Vicki and Geraldine speak to the lead author, Natalie Foos, and the world’s foremost expert on the disorder, Dr Marc Feldman.Talking points:Trolling or mental health disorder?Why are so many mental health organisations nervous of talking about Munchausen by internet?What are the warning signs that someone is faking a disorder online?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in th...
2022-04-1840 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone10. Michelle DrouinWe’re obsessed with our phones and we’re obsessed with relationships. Vicki and Geraldine talk to the academic who studies how one is changing the other. Talking points: When you’re watching TV and your partner picks up their phone, should you put the television on pause?Back-burner partners: how technology is encouraging us to keep our romantic options open.Facebook is increasingly cited in divorces. Has it become too easy to cheat?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helpi...
2022-04-1138 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone9. Frank KellyThis week’s guest is the lead researcher of a recent report for the Royal Society, The Online Information Environment. Frank Kelly, Professor of the Mathematics of Systems at Cambridge University, talks to Vicki and Geraldine about scientific misinformation.Talking points: Who decides what’s scientific misinformation anyway?Why taking down disinformation can make matters worse. How going for a babyccino could set your child on the path to mathematical competence and scientific literacy.Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our...
2022-04-0440 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone7. Pernille TranbergVicki and Geraldine talk to the Danish writer and think-tanker, Pernille Tranberg, about her work helping children understand why data privacy matters.Talking points:Why we're all public figures now.Is encryption the answer?Will we end up age-gating the internet?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki Shotbolt. Tech Shock is produced and edited by Tim Malster.wwwTwitterFacebookInstagram
2022-03-1434 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone6. Virginia DignumVicki and Geraldine talk to Virginia Dignum, author of Responsible Artificial Intelligence, about how not to be afraid of robots.Talking points:What is AI anyway?How to design AI for human values when humans don’t agree?Will the robots take our jobs?How like us are robots?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki Shotbolt. Tech Shock is produced and edited by Tim Malster.ww...
2022-03-0743 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone5. Joe MillerVicki and Geraldine talk to the Founder and CEO of the Washington Center for Technology Policy Inclusion (Washing Tech) about how to bring diverse voices into tech policy.Talking points:Mark Zuckerberg: an Alexander the Great for our times?What’s the problem with legislation to protect consumers ignoring race and gender?Will the Supreme Court block efforts to reduce online hate speech in the US?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in th...
2022-02-2824 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone4. Lulu FreemontVicki talks to the Head of Regulation at Tech UK about the possible unintended consequences of the Online Safety Bill, and what to do about online fraud.Talking points: What might be the unintended consequences of the Online Safety Bill? Will regulation stifle tech innovation in the UK?Can law enforcement ever get as digitally sophisticated as the fraudsters?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vi...
2022-02-2140 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone3. David ZendleVicki and Geraldine talk to the leading researcher into the links between gaming and gambling, Dr David Zendle, about why, increasingly, playing means paying.Talking points:Are loot boxes in some of the world’s most popular online games a gateway to gambling for childrenWith billions of dollars washing through online gaming every year, why aren’t alarm bells ringing about money laundering?Why have games turned from playthings into sales platforms?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to t...
2022-02-1447 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone2. Rachel de SouzaVicki and Geraldine talk to the Children’s Commissioner for England, Dame Rachel de Souza.Talking points:- Why are young children easily able to access violent pornography?- How could PSHE do a better job at countering rape culture?- Why is the energy and enthusiasm of parents not better supported to help children?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki Shotbolt. Te...
2022-02-0748 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone1. Charles KrielTo kick off our latest series, the disinformation expert Dr Charles Kriel talks to Vicki and Geraldine about how yoga mums have been drawn to Covid disinformation and QAnon. Talking points:- Why has the far right been so good at drawing in unlikely allies, from churches to natural health practitioners?- What turns a suburban mum who does yoga into believing the world is run by a cabal of paedophiles?- Why is the hashtag #SaveTheChildren so dangerous?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the l...
2022-01-3142 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone13. Geraldine and Vicki round up the seasonVicki and Geraldine review podcast highlights from 2021Talking points:What have we learnt about the Online Safety Bill?What will we be talking about next year - and does it have to be the metaverse?Are we optimistic looking ahead to 2022?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki Shotbolt. Tech Shock is produced and edited by Tim Malster.wwwTwitterFacebookInstagram
2021-12-1345 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone12. Caroline Dinenage MPVicki talks to Caroline Dinenage MP for Gosport and former Minister at the DCMS about her hopes for the Online Safety Bill and the future of the internet.Talking points:Is the Online Safety Bill actually going to work or will it push children to less safe corners of the digital world?Why have parents been left out of the bill?What will success look like - what can we hope for in the future?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all...
2021-12-0627 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone11. Nejra van ZalkNejra van Zalk is a psychologist working in the Dyson School of Engineering at Imperial College, London. Vicki and Geraldine talk to her about the contribution psychologists can make to how we experience our online lives.Talking points:How much are we making our own decisions when we're online?Why are we cavalier about giving away our data online, even when we care about privacy?Could online platforms and services actually improve young people’s mental health?Will we have to sacrifice some convenience online for our own good?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone pr...
2021-11-2945 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone10. Poppy WoodVicki and Geraldine talk to the UK director of Reset about how to fix the online world.Talking points:When it comes to legislating for internet safety, why do parents so often get left out?Is all the talk about digital literacy fundamentally a kind of victim-blaming?How do we stop online harms without infringing freedom of speech?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki Shotbolt...
2021-11-2245 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone9. William PerrinVicki and Geraldine talk to the man responsible for an enormous amount of behind-the-scenes shaping of the Online Safety Bill about whether we’re finally about to get an internet that feels a bit less like the setting for a Mad Max movie.Talking points: Are we about to enter the public health era of the internet?What impact has the Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen had?In a Bill that’s squarely aimed at protecting children, why don’t parents get a mention?Tech Shock is a Paren...
2021-11-0848 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone8. Tracey FollowsVicki and Geraldine talk to the futurist Tracey Follows, author of The Future of You, about the internet’s potential to undermine our sense of who we are.Talking points:How can we think clearly about the future when tech is so full of surprises?Does tech lead to authoritarian governments?Should you do a genetic test?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki Shotbolt. Tech Shock is produced and ed...
2021-11-0147 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone7. Olaf KapellaVicki and Geraldine talk to Olaf Kapella, who has been researching families with younger children for the EU, about why parents matter matter so much to their children’s digital lives.Talking points:The research found there were three different ways of dealing with tech and younger children - which type of family are you?Is screen time the right way to think about setting rules for online activity?Is it a good idea for tech to be used as punishment and reward?Can avoiding tech actually make children more vulnerable?Tech Shock is...
2021-10-2548 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone6. Emily OsterVicki and Geraldine talk to Emily Oster, the New York Times bestselling author of Cribsheet and, now, The Family Firm, about how data can help us make better parenting decisions.Talking points:Is it possible to take some of the emotions out of parenting choices?What does data tell us about screen time?Why, when thinking about your child’s day, you should start with sleep.Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on...
2021-10-1836 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone5. Jonathan Baggaley and Voice BoxAs Voice Box publishes its report, Digital wellbeing, Vicki and Geraldine talk to Jonathan Baggaley, Chief Executive of the PSHE Association, and Natalie Foos and Lottie Gimlette of Voice Box about the highs and lows for young people online.Talking pointsGiven the data on young people and pornography, why isn’t more being done?What's causing the epidemic of anxiety in young people?What kinds of conversations should parents be having with young people?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for al...
2021-10-1148 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone4. Carissa VelizVicki and Geraldine talk to the author of Privacy is Power about toxic data.Talking points:Are you not getting jobs because of your secret data file?What’s wrong with the argument that data collection doesn’t matter if you’ve got nothing to hide?What links online data brokers with the creators of the subprime mortgage market who were behind the 2008 financial crash?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digita...
2021-10-0449 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone3. How brain science can help with parenting teensVicki and Geraldine ask Dr John Coleman, author of The Teacher And The Teenage Brain, whether recent advances in neuroscience can help parents understand and manage their teenagers’ online livesTalking points:Why carrot may be better than stickThe teenage brain - a perfect storm for online addiction?OK, so we know a bit more about the teenage brain - can that be turned into strategies for making family life happier?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our wo...
2021-09-2751 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone2. Is social media creating a tipping point for the world?As the Wall St Journal reports that Facebook knew Instagram was making girls unhappy but did nothing, Vicki and Geraldine talk to Charles Arthur, tech journalist and author of Social Warming, a comprehensive history and analysis of why our relationship with social media is so often dysfunctional.Talking points:Is social media making most young people feel like losers?’Trans women are women’, ‘abortion at 8 weeks is murder’, we need critical race theory’ - why are these scissor statements?When is free speech really closing-down speech?Tech Shock is a Parent Z...
2021-09-2051 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone1. Is AI already taking over?What is AI exactly? How is it different from the algorithms we know and live with? In the first episode of the new series, Vicki and Geraldine ask Carly Kind, director of the Ada Lovelace Institute, whether we should be panicked?Talking points:Are we guinea pigs for a great AI experiment?Is AI affecting children’s lives?How can we work out what AI is doing to us?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in...
2021-09-1348 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone33: Why is there so much sexual harassment in schools?Vicki and Geraldine discuss the recent Ofsted report into sexual harassment of girls and ask how much is down to what happens online?Talking points:- How significant is it that young children are being exposed to hardcore porn?- Why - apparently - can nothing be done to stop this?- What can parents do?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki...
2021-06-2139 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone32: How is tech changing parenting?Vicki and Geraldine talk to Professor Victoria Nash, new director of the Oxford Internet Institute.Is tech undermining parental instinct?What could the government be doing better when it comes to regulating tech companies?The new Online Safety Bill relies on technical solutions - will they actually work?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki Shotbolt. Tech Shock is produced and edited by Tim Malster.www
2021-06-1438 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone31: Are we punishing children online?Amanda Third of Western Sydney University’s Young and Resilient Research Centre tells Vicki and Geraldine how online safety worries can lead to adults controlling children and young people against their interests.Talking pointsIs online resilience simply a personal quality?Is it more than ‘bouncing back’?Technology is often implicated in young people’s declining mental health. But can it actually be made to help?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the...
2021-06-0739 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone30: Are men monopolising data?Vicki and Geraldine talk to Lauren Klein, co-author of Data Feminism, about what’s wrong with data collection, its presentation and ethics.Talking points:What doesn’t get counted?Nobody can fit their whole self into a form: can datasets ever reflect the way things really are?Are emotion and data, far from being opposites, actually inextricably linked?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping fami...
2021-05-3147 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone29: How to talk to your children about sexVicki and Geraldine talk to Leah Jewett of Outspoken Sex Ed.Talking points:How to have the ‘porn talk'What difference has pornography made to the way young people think about sex?How can parents talk to boys about consent?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki Shotbolt. Tech Shock is produced and edited by Ti...
2021-05-2427 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone28: Hacking the Pentagon from teenage bedroomsVicki and Geraldine talk to Julia Davidson, Professor of Criminology and an expert in cybercrime and online harms, about how easy it is for young people to get drawn into breaking the law online.Talking points:Are all young people vulnerable to being drawn into cybercrime?What kinds of young people are attracted?Not all cybercrime is hacking: what should we do about young people illegally accessing pornography?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all...
2021-05-1744 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone27: How students are putting themselves through college by making adult content onlineVicki and Geraldine talk to Lottie Gimlette of Voice Box about their report on Only Fans.Talking points:What’s the appeal of Only Fans?Is this kind of sex work sex positive or peak patriarchy?How secure is the platform’s age-gating?Is it as straightforward as it seems - or is there grooming, and pimps?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vi...
2021-05-0340 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone26: Will compulsory relationships and sex education improve children’s lives?In the wake of reports of sexual harassment in schools, Vicki and Geraldine talk to Jonathan Baggaley of the PSHE Association about what’s gone wrong.Talking points:- Are parents withdrawing children from RSE?- What do we know about sexual harassment in schools?- Pornography: an extreme form of surveillance capitalism?- As young people face an epidemic of poor mental health, why are some children better protected?*The research we said we would reference in th...
2021-04-2644 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone25: Is tech ruining Generation Z?Vicki and Geraldine talk to Robert Wigley, author of Born Digital, The Story of a Distracted Generation, about what he sees as the damaging effects of tech on young people.Talking points:- Is tech really eroding empathy among the young?- If young people are so damaged by tech, how come most of them demand their work has purpose?- How big a problem is it that online harms legislation doesn’t include financial harms?- Is it actually helpful to vi...
2021-04-1940 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone24: Digital poverty: it’s not all about moneyVicki and Geraldine talk to Ellen Helsper, Professor of Digital Inequalities at LSE, about why giving children laptops isn’t enough.Talking points:- Why does social disadvantage so often turn into into digital disadvantage?- Will the gap between the digital haves and have-nots widen, stay the same, or get smaller as more people are exposed to tech?- Why have we been so bad at teaching children the real digital skills they need to thrive online?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our wo...
2021-04-1246 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone23: Can design make the internet safer?Vicki and Geraldine talk to Sarah Drummond of design agency Snook about baking safety into the design of tech products and services.Talking points:How far can designers affect our online experiences?The internet - as designed so far - doesn’t always seem to be in our best interests so why should we trust designers?'Safety tech’ implies bolting tools onto existing services - is there a better way of thinking about designing for safety?Is tech innovation possible without making mistakes?Could ’safer’ platforms and services become more attractive than those that prioritise persuasive design to keep us...
2021-04-0550 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone22: Surveillance capitalism - an idea that won’t stand up?Vicki and Geraldine talk to Sam Gilbert, fintech entrepreneur, Cambridge researcher, and author of the radical new book, Good Data, about why he takes issue with the fashionable idea of surveillance capitalism.Talking points:How much does it matter that ‘our data’ is being collected?Is data actually ’the new oil’?How bad is online advertising really?Is the focus on privacy actually harming our ability to use data for public good?What would good use of data look like?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our w...
2021-03-2952 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone21: True or False?Vicki and Geraldine talk to Nicola Aitken of Full Fact about misinformation - and how we can possibly tell what’s true online.Talking points:Who is attracted to misinformation?What psychological needs do conspiracy theories meet?Can small fact-checking organisations such as Full Fact push back against the sheer volume of untruths online?Has disinformation become war by other means?What do we need to know to be more media literate?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in...
2021-03-2230 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone20: Bot DetectivesCan machines make the online world a better place? Vicki and Geraldine talk to Ian Stevenson, CEO of OSTIA (the Online Safety Tech Industry Association) about whether a British innovation success can solve the problems of the internet.Talking points:- Will online safety tech inevitably compromise privacy?- Do we apply higher standards of privacy and free speech online to offline?- How big a threat to children’s safety is end-to-end encryption?- Will age verification result in a second-class internet for children?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on...
2021-03-1537 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone19: Addicted!Why are we facing a gambling - and now gaming - addiction crisis? Vicki and Geraldine talk to Professor Henrietta Bowden-Jones, founder of the first NHS gambling disorders clinic and also the first NHS gaming disorders clinic.Talking points:Are there links between gambling and gaming?How come we don’t know how big a problem we’ve got?Gaming: a gateway to problem gambling?What does gaming disorder look like?A personal problem, affecting a minority of ‘vulnerable’ people? Or a public health issue?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media fo...
2021-03-0843 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone18: What about the rest of the world?The UK is trying to regulate the internet - but much will depend on what happens globally. Vicki and Geraldine talk to Max Beverton-Palmer of the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change about how much we can seriously do by ourselves.Talking points:Why is 2021 the year of rethinking the internet?Will a plethora of national initiatives lead to the so-called splinternet?To what extent can national regulation work when tech companies have global reach?Will children's rights to participate online be damaged by the rush to keep them safe?How do...
2021-03-0131 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone17: How can we rescue education post-pandemic?Lockdown learning has deepened and sharpened inequality. Vicki and Geraldine talk to Rebecca Montacute of the Sutton Trust about whether we can fix that.Talking points:Why do so many children still not have devices?Why are they still not connected?Will there be more blended learning in future?Can the National Tutoring programme help students catch up?What can we do about 16-19-year-olds, who are in many ways the worst affected?How would we reopen schools (given that we are not epidemiologists)?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media...
2021-02-2236 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone16: How can we balance children’s right to be online with their right to be safe?As the UNHCR announces that children’s rights apply online, Vicki and Geraldine talk to Tony Stower of 5Rights about what that means for for tech companies, policymakers and parents.Talking points:- How is it helpful to view online harms through the lens of children’s rights?- How do you manage competing rights using the blunt instruments of legislation?- Why has children’s data been overlooked until recently in the harms debate?- Why is end-to-end encryption absolutely terrible for child safety?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media...
2021-02-1543 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone15: Video games: the best thing that ever happened to family life?Vicki and Geraldine talk to Andy Robertson, author of Taming Gaming.Talking points:- Should parents stop worrying about the time children spend gaming?- Can parents learn to love video games?- Should games provide endless opportunities for spending?- Does publishing the odds of loot boxes in video games make them any less like gambling?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki Shotbolt. Tech Shock...
2021-02-0841 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone14: Reasons to be CheerfulVicki and Geraldine talk to Dave Coplin, self proclaimed pragmatic optimist, about why we shouldn’t be scared of tech.Talking points:What to do about big data?Can we solve algorithmic bias?Are old ways of thinking stopping us from making the most of the digital future?How can human beings get their act together to use tech for good?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vi...
2021-02-0150 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone13: Whatever happened to Digital Inclusion?Vicki and Geraldine talk to Chi Onwurah, Shadow Minister for Science, Research and Digital about digital poverty, the impact of social media on democracy, and whether we should feel positive about Britain’s tech future.Talking points:- Should we be treating laptops like textbooks and data as a utility?- What happened to targets for digital inclusion?- Who has the right to ban Donald Trump?- Can the duty of care get beyond platforms marking their own homework?- How do we become creators of technology as well as users of it?Tech Shock is a...
2021-01-2523 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone12: Remote Learning - How could we be doing it better?Vicki and Geraldine talk to Tom Rose of Oak National Academy about what we need to do next to ensure children get the best online learning.Talking pointsShould we have been doing blended learning sooner?What can we do about digital poverty and lack of devices?What is the latest news on giving children free access to educational sites, if they’re using phones to connect?Should Ofsted be inspecting schools’ digital provision?What is the future of online learning, post-pandemic?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the...
2021-01-1835 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone11: The Year of the ScreenVicki and Geraldine round up a digital year like no other and look at the government’s end-of-year proposals for regulating the internet.Talking points:What have been the big issues for families online in 2020?The government has announced its latest proposals for regulating tech companies - are they the right ones?What can we expect from 2021?Thanks ago so much for all your help this year. It’s been really fun. Have a lovely, if somewhat reduced, Christmas, and a happy new year - and look forward to picking up the podcast again in 2021,Tech...
2020-12-2818 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone10: Are The Anti-vaxxers Winning?Vicki and Geraldine talk to Professor Helen Bedford of Great Ormond Street about online anti-vaccination campaigns and what they mean for the Covid vaccination rollout.Talking points:Has there always been resistance to vaccination?Why does social media make things so much worse?Has vaccination been co-opted into the culture wars?Is it enough to tell people the facts?Can scientists beat the anti-vaxxers on their own ground?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age...
2020-12-2126 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone9: What Can Be Done About Online Hate?Vicki and Geraldine talk to Joe Mulhall of 'Hope Not Hate' about the threat of the far-right online.Talking points:- are different types of platform are facilitating hate speech in different ways?- are there limits to free speech?- is it reasonable to expect platforms to design out hate, given the needs of the online attention economy?- how should the government regulate, and who else needs to be involved?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive...
2020-12-1432 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone8: What kind of world will children face, and how can we prepare them?This week, Vicki and Geraldine talk to Professor Sonia Livingstone about her book, Parenting for a Digital Future.Talking points:Why do parents worry so much about screen time?Should children be learning to code?Parents are stuck in a giant digital parenting experiment - but is it the same experiment for everyone?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki Shotbolt. Tech Shock is produced and edited by...
2020-12-0748 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone7: Should Parents Feel So Guilty?This week, Vicki and Geraldine talk about screen time and other guilt-inducing aspects of family life online.Talking points:Why is play not seen as play when it’s online?Is it just that the technology’s new?Has parenting itself changed in ways that make parents feel more guilty?Why do parents feel they’re mainly - even solely - responsible for what their children get up to online?Is 'safety tech' going to solve the problems of feeling out of control?Can legislation help to take away some parental guilt?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone p...
2020-11-3024 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone6: Are There Too Many Men on the Internet?Vicki and Geraldine talk to Casey Calista from Glitch, whose recent research found that online abuse of women and non-binary people increased during lockdown.Why is online abuse not seen as real abuse? Is the answer more women in STEM? What are the implications for democracy? And whose responsibility is it to put things right?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on our work on helping families to thrive in the digital age. Presented by Vicki Shotbolt. Tech Shock is produced and edited by Tim Malster.
2020-11-2339 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone5: Can the Government Stop Internet Harms?Vicki and Geraldine talk to Will Perrin of Carnegie UK Trust about the upcoming (sometime soon!) Digital Harms Bill. What are the ideas behind the government’s proposals? Will they work? Talking points:Where does the idea of a ‘duty of care’ on which the legislation will be based come from?What does it cover - and, perhaps more importantly, what doesn’t it cover?Are we agreed about what is harmful?How can global tech companies be persuaded to comply?Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social media for all the latest on...
2020-11-1645 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone4: Are Children Being Ripped Off By Online Games?Vicki and Geraldine look at the links between loot boxes and gambling.Subscribe now, rate the podcast, and give it a 5-star review – and keep listening every Monday morning for a new episode of ‘Tech Shock – from Parent Zone’. Talking points:- 93% of children in the UK play online games- Loot boxes are a feature of all sorts of games, both on mobile and AAA games (the big expensive ones).- How like gambling are they, really? - Is there an argument for legislation? - What about coercive mo...
2020-11-0922 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone3: How can the public have more say in the future of the internet?Legislation is coming in the UK and Europe that could change the internet. But is the public consulted? Not much. Vicki Shotbolt and Geraldine Bedell talk to Ellen Judson of Demos, who has been researching public attitudes to online harms.Subscribe now, rate the podcast, and give it a 5-star review – and keep listening every Monday morning for a new episode of ‘Tech Shock – from Parent Zone’. Talking points:Why does the discussion of ‘what to do about the internet’ tend to go on over people’s heads among politicians, think tankers, tech co...
2020-11-0232 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone2: Can age-gating the internet ever work? with John CarrVicki and Geraldine are joined by their very first guest, John Carr, who is, among many other things, Secretary of the Children’s Charities’ Coalition on Internet Safety, an advisor to the UN, to the EU and to the UK government. They'll be looking at focusing on the often vexed question of trying to protect children online through age verification tools.Subscribe now, rate the podcast, and give it a 5-star review – and keep listening every Monday morning for a new episode of ‘Tech Shock – from Parent Zone’. Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zone on social med...
2020-10-2641 minTech Shock - from Parent Zone1: Are Children Creating Porn Online?Welcome to ‘Tech Shock’ – the new podcast from Parent Zone! Vicki Shotbolt and Geraldine Bedell are your hosts, looking at how digital technology is affecting family life. They’ll help explain its mysteries to parents, teachers, professionals and policymakers. In this first episodes, they're looking at a platform that’s been growing and growing (Only Fans) and asking ‘Are children creating porn online?’Subscribe now, rate the podcast, and give it a 5-star review – and keep listening every Monday morning for a new episode of ‘Tech Shock – from Parent Zone’. Tech Shock is a Parent Zone production. Follow Parent Zon...
2020-10-1925 minTech Shock - from Parent ZoneTech Shock - from Parent Zone TrailerWelcome to ‘Tech Shock’ – the new podcast from Parent Zone! Vicki Shotbolt and Geraldine Bedell are your hosts, looking at how digital technology is affecting family life. They’ll help explain its mysteries to parents, teachers, professionals and policymakers, starting off by looking at whether streaming platforms are encouraging young people to make porn, whether online lives are creating a generation of gamblers and whether there are too many men on the internet. The first episode launches next Monday morning! So subscribe now, rate the podcast, and give it a 5-star review – and keep listening every Monday morning for a new episode of ‘...
2020-10-1201 min