Before taking away children's smartphones
Korea is moving to keep minors off social media and phones out of classrooms, but the adults writing those rules cannot look up from their own screens. A few days ago, heading home from work, I was standing seven stories underground at Daegok Station on Subway Line 3. Six elevators connect to the transfer platform, and long lines backed up at each. I picked the shorter one and waited. The…
Korea is taking steps to prevent minors from using social media and keeping phones out of classrooms, but the adults responsible for these rules are engrossed in their own screens. At Daegok Station on Subway Line 3, I waited in a subway line packed with people, each buried in their phones. The elevators to the transfer platform were numerous, yet the one I chose stayed on the second floor.
As I pressed the call button, I noticed that nobody else seemed to notice or care. Everyone in the line was staring down at their phones, their faces blank. I pressed the button myself and boarded the elevator, where the passengers walked past me with their eyes glued to their screens. The term "smombie" - a combination of "smartphone" and "zombie" - was coined over a decade ago to describe those who walk without looking up, but it has become so commonplace that it is no longer remarkable. We have become so reliant on our devices that we have given up the idle minutes between activities.
Written by urgent.news from The Korea Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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- Before taking away children's smartphones koreatimes.co.kr
