Cate, 16

Media Consumption: Average 6 hours on weekdays, average 11 hours on weekends

Favorite Media/Technology: Instagram

How do you and your family interact with media/technology?

I’d say that me and my family don’t really communicate or interact with each other a lot online because we don’t use that platform as a main form of communication. It's a very distant relationship but we use family group chats to share good meals or to update each other.

How do you and your friends interact with media/technology?

I would say we interact with each other a lot on social media because it is where we have a lot of our conversations when we’re not in school, we talk a lot about drama and our lives and stuff that’s going on or we use it to complement each other on each others posts just to interact in general.

What's the most used media among your friends?

Definitely Instagram because that’s where everyone is at, everyone has the app and like honestly that’s where people like to stalk you with. That’s where everyone shares aspects of their lives and you can directly communicate with people from Instagram.

What do you think about Instagram removing likes?

I 100% like it, I think that it’s a great thing they did that because I know people are always concerned with likes and honestly since they removed the feature I don’t care what I post anymore as long as I like the post I post it without thinking or without having the concern that oh I'm going to take this down because I don’t have a lot of likes.

What is your favorite/least favorite thing about media/technology?

My least favorite thing is that it's a big distraction, I've become dependent on my phone it removes my focus from other important things that I need to get done.

What do you use media for?

I use media mainly for entertainment I like staying in the loop for pop culture, shopping, watching movies or shows and I also like sharing aspects of my life, my accomplishments with people who follow me and friends and stuff.

How are you using media during the COVID-19 pandemic?

It was different in social media because in social media, I deleted all my media platforms because it got very toxic for me during COVID since I couldn’t go outside and interact with people. All I was exposed to was online and so I took steps to delete it because it got really unhealthy because it was all I was focused on but in technology I used Zoom a lot to attend classes online but on social media I didn't have any.

What was toxic about it?

I think because everyone was at home it just got boring all the time and so being on it and seeing all my other friends hanging out when I couldn’t go out was very sad to me and I didn’t want to see it altogether, so I just deleted it.

What is one thing you want the people who create the media you like to watch/ play/ interact with to know?

For developers, I feel like they need to have more regulation on what gets shared on media platforms because there's a lot of dangerous subjects, a lot of dangerous people online that people get exposed to and it's also just really affects their own personality and wellbeing. There should be more regulation on what gets shared online and what the type of people can have access to online but for influencers and content creators I would say, be honest in the content that you are creating, be careful what you share and don’t create some false reality to people who watch your content because if you're just doing it for the views then it's very toxic and if you're gonna be promoting items that aren’t good for your fans knowing you have a really big following look up to you, be more aware of what you post and be honest with your following.

Because you’re a teenager, how do you think media affects you differently? Do you feel like technology and media satisfy development needs like romantic relationships, belonging or do you feel like media makes it worse and doesn’t satisfy those needs?

It definitely hurts your wellbeing because when you’re really young you compare yourself a lot. You're at a stage where you're not really developed. Social media has affected my well being because I compare my life with other adults and 16 yr olds. It makes a downward comparison because you compare your life with others online and it creates a negative outlook on what you have and make you really ungrateful and not seeing things for how it is because you’re comparing on what other people choose to share when it's not what their real life is like.

If you were a parent, what age would you give your child access to media and how would you guide them, would you be strict or not?

At 15 or 16 I would give them access to media because I wouldn't have a phone if I was 12 because I would post really embarrassing things and just thinking about your digital footprint just save yourself from the embarrassing posts. I would give them access when they are older, mature and more sure of themselves to use it. I wouldn’t be too strict. Our mom raised us with a lot of privacy and freedom and I would want the same for my kids as well like maybe following them is the most I would do but regulating what they share I wouldn’t be strict because if I was a parent I would teach them the dangers and hope they apply them as they navigate the digital world.

Interviewed by: Cassandra Rabaya, UCLA Student