Comment on Sir Gareth Southgate: Boys need role models, not gaming and porn
steeznson@lemmy.world 1 week ago
Was going to comment something like imagine being GenZ and growing up with Mike Adriano and Trevor from GTA as your role models.
Actually as a millenial I remember spending my time getting Tommy Vercetti to use prostitutes in Vice City while the free porn sites were far less moderated and contained extremely questionable content.
Maybe these external influences are less of an issue if people realise they are “entertainment” and not reality. I could picture a kid who struggles to separate the two but they’d be a minority.
IMO parents/caregivers need to step up to ensure kids are raised properly but I think that’s the main point Southgate is making.
Churbleyimyam@lemm.ee 1 week ago
As a fellow millennial and Vice City alumni I agree with you and Gareth Southgate.
But I also think that the quantity of time that kids are spending online and in front of screens is playing a bigger part than we recognise. We didn’t have smartphone on us 24/4. And of course content producers have gotten better at making their stuff visually stimulating and addictive.
Funnily enough though, a few weeks ago I had some late night sessions playing GTA for the first time in about 15 years and noticed afterwards that I was driving faster and accelerating much hard in the car IRL!
SleafordMod@feddit.uk 1 week ago
Yeah I think both of those could be reasons why young people have problems today. Another reason could be the Covid lockdowns, which resulted in young people spending more time online, and less time in the real world.
When I was young I spent some time online, using internet forums etc. But the most fun I had was when I socialised with real people in the real world.
Churbleyimyam@lemm.ee 1 week ago
Yeah, it was the same for me. And I think you’re right about the lockdowns too. Apparently those kids even have lower IQs as a result…
rah@feddit.uk 1 week ago
Out of curiosity, what problems are you referring to?
SleafordMod@feddit.uk 1 week ago
I think this is an example:
Flamekebab@piefed.social 1 week ago
The dark patterns of modern design is the biggie for me. Addictiveness is being optimised for. Back in the day it was just a happy accident (for developers).
I don't fret about the contents of what they're exposed to (oh no, nudity and violence, how outlandish, how will humans cope...) but the format it's presented being designed to screw with their brains ain't good.