Treacle, Tacos, and Tactics: A Mid-Summer Update

It has been one of those weeks where life feels a little bit like a balancing act—partly because of the sheer volume of noise coming from our local community online, and partly because my own energy levels have decided to take a bit of a sabbatical.

We’ve all had those stretches where everything seems to collide at once: community discourse, personal health, and the sheer unpredictability of the sporting calendar. So, I thought I’d sit down, have a bit of a natter, and catch you all up on what’s been happening.

The Stoke Food Scene: A Digital Debate

If you’ve been scrolling through social media in the Stoke-on-Trent area lately, you’ve likely noticed that it’s absolutely saturated with food reviews. Everyone’s a critic these days, aren't they?

It seems to be a real bone of contention—you’ve got the reviewers trying to share their experiences, and then a whole cohort of people in the comments "moaning" about them. But if you ask me, we should be looking at this differently. Whether it's a glowing recommendation or a fair critique, anything that puts local businesses on the map and shines a spotlight on Stoke-on-Trent in a positive light has to be a good thing.

Let's not forget, creating engaging social media content—filming, editing, finding the right angle—is a genuine skill in 2026. It’s hard work. So, kudos to those putting themselves out there and celebrating the local food scene. We’re lucky to have such a vibrant variety of spots to grab a bite, and I’m all for supporting the high street.

Wading in Treacle

Speaking of local life, I’ve had to slow my own pace down this week. To be perfectly honest, I don't know what's come over me, but I’ve been feeling like I’m wading in treacle. Everything feels a little heavy, and my energy has just evaporated.

It’s completely out of character for me—I’m usually the last person you’d find lying down in between swimming lessons. But yesterday, I came home and was out for a couple of hours. That simply doesn't happen in the daytime. It’s a bit of a wake-up call to listen to my body when it’s feeling a bit achy and run down. I’m feeling a bit better now, and with a proper night’s rest, I’m hoping to be back on form before long. It’s a good reminder that we’re not machines; sometimes, a bit of downtime is the most productive thing we can do.

The World Cup Conundrum

Finally, we have to talk about the football. The World Cup is getting properly interesting now that we’re into the knockout rounds. There’s something special about watching these so-called "lesser" teams take the big guns to extra time; it reminds you that on any given day, anything can happen.

England have got a massive match coming up against Mexico. They are a decent side, and with the home advantage, it’s going to be a nail-biter. I’ve heard the Mexico fans are notorious for making plenty of noise around the hotels at unearthly hours to try and unsettle the players—classic tournament tactics!

The real struggle, however, is the kickoff time: 1:00 am. With work the next morning at 8:30, I’m facing a bit of a dilemma. Do I try to get a bit of sleep and wake up for the match, or do I just power through? The fear, of course, is that if it goes to extra time and penalties—which, let’s be honest, is a very England way to do things—I’ll be pulling an all-nighter. A very tired, very stressed all-nighter.

How are you all handling the late kickoffs? Are you planning to watch the England game, or are you prioritising your sleep? Let me know in the comments—I’d love to hear how you’re balancing the tournament excitement with the reality of a working week.

“This text was conceived and directed by a human, using Voice-to-Text and AI assistance to overcome a dyslexia induced literacy barrier.”

The Great Scroll: Why an Under-16s Social Media Ban is Just the Beginning

Last week’s news about the government proposing a blanket ban on social media for under-16s sent the internet into an absolute meltdown. Some people were crying "censorship!", but honestly, it got me thinking. We are living in an era where we are consuming vast quantities of absolute garbage, and we’re all a bit stuck in a dopamine pit. 🕳️

​I decided to tackle the elephant in the room with my ICT group this week. We broke the ice by chatting about the new Toy Story 5 trailer—where the main villain isn't a malicious toy, but a highly addictive tablet. 📺 It perfectly set the stage for a deep dive into how algorithms are designed to keep us scrolling.

​I expected teenage outrage about the ban. Instead, we had an incredibly mature discussion.

The Dopamine Pit and the Lost Art of Boredom

There are plenty of studies out there showing how short-form videos—those endless TikToks and Instagram Reels—are actively reducing our attention spans. You get a little mini-reward every thirty seconds, and it genuinely rewires your brain. We're seeing suggestions that this constant stimulation is impacting reading abilities in schools and the general capacity to just sit and concentrate.

Think about it: people can barely sit through a full-length film anymore. We've reached a point where television series have to start with a recap just to keep us engaged.

There was a brilliant bit of reporting on BBC News recently that perfectly captured this. They were recording in a school, talking to students about the proposed ban, and unsurprisingly, none of them were in favour. One young girl argued she needed her phone to keep in contact with friends. The reporter then gently pointed out her digital wellbeing app, which showed she’d been on her phone for nine hours over the weekend.

"What are you going to do with those nine hours instead?" the reporter asked.

Her response? *"Probably look at the wall."*

It’s a funny, incredibly teenage answer, but it highlights a massive issue. Algorithms have conditioned us to require immediate entertainment. By eliminating boredom, we've lost the quiet mental space where creativity, self-reflection, and emotional processing typically occur.

Confessions of a Scroller

Don't get me wrong, I am definitely consuming too much myself. I'll catch myself watching something on TV and suddenly I'm down an internet rabbit hole: *What's he been in? Who else plays for that team? That international player, what club does he play for?* Before I know it, I've lost an hour.

However, we have to separate the platform from the device. Smartphones are wonderful tools. They allow us to do our banking, our shopping, and navigate our communities. Personally, most of my screen time on a typical day is taken up by music apps and Waze. I would be much more in favour of banning the highly addictive social media platforms for kids, whilst still allowing them to have smartphones for those essential, independent living skills.

The Adolescent Brain Under Siege

While social media offers a sense of connection, its architecture is specifically designed to capture and hold attention. During the teenage years, the brain is uniquely sensitive to social feedback, peer acceptance, and reward. This makes young people incredibly vulnerable to algorithmic design.

Here is what that looks like in practice:

• The Comparison Trap: Social media presents a curated, filtered reality. Constant exposure to idealised bodies and lifestyles leads to upward social comparison. For young women especially, this is strongly correlated with body dysmorphia, anxiety, and the exhausting pressure of perfectionism.
• Sleep Disruption: The blue light from screens suppresses melatonin, delaying sleep. Beyond that, the "vampire routine" encouraged by infinite scrolling leads to chronic sleep deprivation, worsening mood and cognitive performance
• 24/7 Cyberbullying: Historically, bullying stopped when you got home. Now, harassment follows young people into their bedrooms. It’s inescapable, amplified by the ability to share humiliating content instantly, and often worsened by the anonymity of fake accounts.
• The Permanent Digital Footprint: Teenagers are biologically prone to impulsivity, but the internet is forever. A poorly judged comment or a private photo can be screenshotted and weaponised, impacting university admissions and future employment. 

Key insight: The relationship between social media and mental health is often described as a "dose-response" effect. Moderate use (under an hour) has minimal impact, but the risks escalate sharply once you pass the three-hour mark.

The Silver Lining: Why Technology is Neutral

Because this technology exploits natural psychological vulnerabilities, simply telling a teenager to "put the phone down" rarely works without addressing the underlying design of the apps. Yet, it’s important to remember that the technology itself is neutral. The exact same infrastructure has birthed incredibly positive outcomes.

• Niche Community Building: Social media removes geographic barriers. Someone with a rare medical condition or a highly specific hobby can instantly connect with thousands of others globally for support and camaraderie.
• Democratisation of Voice: Anyone with a smartphone can now broadcast to the world, enabling citizen journalism and allowing marginalised groups to organise without needing traditional media gatekeepers.
• Economic Opportunity: The "creator economy" allows a local artisan or independent bookshop to compete. A small business doesn't need a billboard; they can spend a few pounds to target people who genuinely love their craft.
• Rapid Crisis Response: During natural disasters or missing person cases, these networks mobilise resources and coordinate relief efforts far faster than traditional broadcasts.

Behind the Curtain: The Attention Economy

To understand why our feeds look the way they do, we have to look at the mechanics. Think of cookies as the information gatherers and algorithms as the decision makers.

Cookies track your behaviour across the web. If you look at running shoes on a retail site, a third-party cookie notes it. When you open an app later, the algorithm uses that data, combined with your on-platform behaviour, to predict what will keep you engaged.

These algorithms aren't programmed to care about nuance, truth, or public wellbeing. They care about *engagement*. This drives emotional contagion—amplifying polarising, outrage-inducing content because it keeps people typing furiously in the comments. It isolates us in echo chambers, making our own opinions feel absolute.

Ultimately, social media is free because *we* are the product. The platforms gather our data, hold our attention, and sell highly targeted access to advertisers. Shaping public opinion is often just a byproduct of this massive monetisation machine.

Where Do We Go From Here?

Banning social media for under-16s might be a starting point, but it isn't a silver bullet. I genuinely think it's a good idea for everyone—regardless of age—to set strict digital wellbeing targets.

More than anything, we need better digital literacy. We need to educate people that consuming endless streams of short-form videos is harmful, but we also need to teach them how to harness the immense positives this technology offers. We have to learn to control the algorithm, rather than letting it control us.

“This text was conceived and directed by a human, using Voice-to-Text and AI assistance to overcome a dyslexia induced literacy barrier.”

The Great Digital Reset: Making Sense of the Under-16 Social Media Ban

Yesterday, the government dropped a rather significant policy shift onto our newsfeeds: a complete block on social media, including platforms like YouTube, for all under-16s. Almost instantly, the comment sections lit up. Some of the louder voices immediately cried foul, labelling it an act of draconian censorship or a conspiratorial push for digital IDs.

Honestly? I don't buy that for a single minute. To me, throwing around the word 'censorship' in this context feels like a fully-fledged conspiracy theory. While I firmly believe in protecting our personal rights, we also have to face facts: we are living in a day and age where millions of us are consuming vast, terrifying quantities of digital trash.

Falling into the Dopamine Pit

Let's be candid about what a lot of this content actually is. It isn't enriching our lives; it is, effectively, absolute garbage.

When it comes to short-form videos and reels, we are quite literally rewiring our brains. We get stuck in what I call a 'dopamine pit'—a constant cycle of receiving a mini-reward every thirty seconds. It's a phenomenon backed up by science, too. For instance, recent research from King’s College London highlighted that half of the UK public feel their attention span is shorter than it used to be. You can see this creeping into our schools, where there are genuine concerns about how this rapid-fire consumption is impacting reading abilities and the basic capacity to sit and concentrate.

We’ve even reached a point where sitting down to watch a two-hour film feels like a marathon for some. Television series are now frequently having to start with lengthy recaps just to remind viewers what happened a mere week ago.

 "Probably Look at the Wall"

There was a fascinating piece on BBC News recently that perfectly captured the scale of the issue. A reporter was visiting a school, chatting with students about the impending ban. Unsurprisingly, not a single one of them was in favour.

One young girl argued that she desperately needed her apps to keep in touch with friends. The reporter gently pointed out her digital wellbeing tracker, noting she had spent a staggering nine hours on her phone over the weekend. When asked what on earth she was going to do with those nine hours instead, her deadpan response was: *"Probably look at the wall."*

It’s a funny, slightly tragic comment that highlights just how deeply ingrained these habits have become. But it also points to a vital nuance we often miss.

The Tool vs. The Trap

We have to separate the trap of social media from the tool of the smartphone. Smartphones are, objectively, wonderful inventions. They empower us to manage our banking, do our shopping, and confidently navigate around our communities.

Because of this, I would be much more in favour of a targeted ban on social media whilst still allowing under-16s to use smartphones for independent living skills. We shouldn't strip away the tools that make modern life accessible; we just need to filter out the noise.

Navigating Our Own Digital Wellbeing

Don't get me wrong, I am hardly standing on a pedestal here. I readily admit that I consume far too much myself. For me, it doesn't usually manifest as mindless scrolling, but rather as endless, obsessive rabbit holes. I’ll be watching a programme and suddenly think, *"Ooh, what's he been in? Who else plays for that team? That international player, what club does he play for?"  Before I know it, an hour has vanished.

When I actually check my own screen time on a typical day, the bulk of it is taken up by music apps and Waze, which I rely on to navigate around the community. It’s functional, but it’s still screen time. It is exactly why I think it’s a brilliant idea for absolutely everyone—adults included—to set their own digital wellbeing targets.

The Way Forward: Digital Literacy

Ultimately, bans and blocks can only do so much. What we desperately need in this country is a massive push for digital literacy.

We need to educate people—especially the younger generations—that excessive consumption of short-form video and social media is genuinely bad for their mental and cognitive health. But equally, we need to educate them about the immense positives. We need to teach them how to harness these incredible pocket-sized computers to better their lives, rather than letting the algorithms dictate their days. Only when we strike that balance can we truly put the 'smart' back into smartphones

“This text was conceived and directed by a human, using Voice-to-Text and AI assistance to overcome a dyslexia induced literacy barrier.”