Eliza, 14
Average screen time: 8 hours/day on phone; estimated 1 hour of TV
Favorite media/technology: Snapchat
How do you and your family interact with media/technology?
We use family group chats, which I love. It’s a fun place where we can talk when we’re all doing different things. We send pictures, GIFs, life updates, and news articles. I Snapchat my siblings, but they don’t always respond to me. My parents don’t use social media.
How do you and your peers interact with media/technology?
I Facetime my friends a lot and sometimes we Snapchat while we Facetime. Or play iMessage games. We don’t text over iMessage that much anymore; we do it over Snapchat. That’s really the way that we text now.
What do you use media for?
I’m almost always using it to communicate with friends; that’s really the only reason. I text on Snapchat a lot. Sometimes I share posts with my friends on Instagram, but I’m not on Instagram as much. My friends and I also send TikToks to each other -- funny stuff, but also cool places we see online that we want to go to.
What is your favorite/least favorite thing about media/technology?
I feel very connected to my friends; we don’t even need each other’s phone numbers any more, we can just add each other on different apps and communicate with each other in so many different ways. I like how each platform gives me a different feeling -- Snapchat makes me feel grounded, Instagram gives me inspiration, and TikTok makes me feel creative. My least favorite thing is that you can track people. I might tell someone I’m busy, but if they see my Snapchat score went up, they’ll confront me about being on Snapchat. But I was really busy, it’s just so easy to send Snapchats. I don’t like that people think you’re always available.
What is one thing you want the people who create the media you like to watch/play/interact with to know?
I want to see more Asian creators on social media than what I see now. I feel like I see a lot of white, skinny, rich creators. For example, on TikTok I always see the D’Amelio’s, who are typical Connecticut, private school, privileged, preppy girls.
What media are you using more now because of COVID-19?
Snapchat. I get to have one-on-one conversations, and I get so many Snaps, almost constant. It’s a little weird, but I feel like I’m connected to the world and not isolated in my house.
Where do you get most of your information to learn more about COVID?
Family. I don’t really get news from social media. Or I try to look at reliable sources like the New York Times or the Washington Post or CNN.
What media has been helping you stay busy/calm during this difficult time?
Snapchat. Being connected to my friends calms me down. It’s just my mom and I in my house, so my screen time has exploded.
Have you learned anything about how you use media and technology because of COVID?
I feel like I’ve learned to share and respect other people’s opinions about COVID. I’ve learned how other people are taking it, like when people say it’s a hoax. This is definitely the first time I’ve been part of a political-type conversation on social media.
Interview conducted by: Claudia Morris, UCLA rising 4th Year Student