Coronavirus cartoon: We lost the fight against our phones and screens
The desire to limit our screen time is another bit of normalcy that's been completely altered by the coronavirus pandemic.
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Remember when we all cared about limiting our screen time?
With all of us trapped in our homes due to the continued spread of the coronavirus, the time we spend on our electronic gadgets is surging. In my own personal experience, I spend all day clacking away on my computer at work, spend a few hours playing with my kids, then dive into some type of movie or show with my exhausted wife while we both check news headlines on our phone. Only masochists are opening their screen time apps.
It’s even worse for kids, who are out of school and being told to stay six feet away from the small number of friends they’re allowed to see at any one time. According to new data from SuperAwesome, a kids technology company, children between the ages of six and 12 are spending at least 50% more time in front of screens on a daily basis.
“I’ve accessed every educational app you can. I’ve used every online interactive worksheet I can find,” Daniela Helitzer, a doctor of audiology in Boca Raton, Fla., told the New York Times. “If he’s sitting on his iPad for two or three hours a day, I literally don’t even care. It’s like, ‘Use that screen as much as you can.’”
My hope is by the time we get COVID-19 under control, we’ll all come out the other side sick of our gadgets and with a newfound desire to spend our times out and about with friends and family. But I bet our phones won’t be too far away.
More coronavirus cartoons:
My small tribute to grocery store workers, underappreciated heroes on the front lines of the coronavirus.
Great cartoon by my pal Signe Wilkinson about empty shelves and our lack of medical supplies.
Have I drawn a cartoon about toilet paper? Of course.
For more editorial cartoons, visit inquirer.com/opinion/cartoons/.