Announcing Our Second Season of Into the Digital Future

We are thrilled to announce the second season of Into the Digital Future, our podcast that explores the complexities of parenting in the digital age from the perspectives of a wide range of experts in pediatrics, public health, public policy, technology, and more. Hosts Jordan Shapiro (Cooney Center Senior Fellow and author of Father Figure: How to be a Feminist Dad and The New Childhood: Raising Kids to Thrive in a Connected World) and Laura Higgins (Senior Director of Community Safety & Digital Civility at Roblox) dig into some of the many facets of kids’ well-being in a digital world.

Our guests this season offer deep expertise in their efforts to make the internet a safer and more welcoming place. We’re kicking it off this week with a conversation with Julie Inman Grant, Australia’s eSafety Commissioner about the role governments, educators, and parents play in helping to protect youth from potential harms. Next week, Dr. Hina Talib specializes in adolescent medicine and offers a pediatrician’s perspective on the unique developmental paths of teenagers and the impact of tech on their well-being. Jennie Ito, a developmental psychologist and expert in children’s media and content appropriateness, talks about her role in creating safer digital environments for kids at Roblox. Trisha Prabhu discusses some of the social dynamics that can lead to digital harassment and how she was inspired to develop a tool to encourage users to pause before posting potentially damaging content.

In November, Professor Amanda Third from Western Sydney University shares highlights from the research she has conducted with children around the world that has informed the United Nations’ Digital Rights of the Child and the Global Kids Online Research Project. Melissa Mercado, a lead researcher at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, speaks with Jordan and Laura about online violence as a public health issue, and emphasizes the value of leveraging online spaces for positive connections and skill-building. Jaspal Sandhu, Executive Vice President at Hopelab, delves into the positive possibilities of technology and the importance of involving young people as active partners in shaping solutions. And we’ll wrap our season with a conversation with Lucia Sotomayor, from the Office of the Special Representative of the UN Secretary General on Violence Against Children, to discuss how the POP Project is working to protect youth through online participation and how we can make the internet a safer place for children.

Please join us as we delve into how our guests are working to protect and empower young people in the digital world. And please share with friends and colleagues!

You can find us on your favorite podcast platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartRadio, and YouTube.