{
  "id": 9170713,
  "title": "Jordan's King Abdullah laments tech's effect on dwindling attention spans in UNGA speech",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/22/jordans-king-abdullah-laments-techs-effect-on-dwindling-attention-9170713",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-22T16:51:48.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The National UAE",
    "slug": "the-national-uae",
    "url": "https://www.thenationalnews.com/future/technology/2026/09/22/king-abdullah-un-technology-trump/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Jordan's King Abdullah II cautioned on Tuesday that technology, particularly artificial intelligence, is eroding people's attention spans, potentially destabilizing global affairs. At the UN General Assembly, King Abdullah highlighted how conflicts' images and videos can be accessed instantly on mobile devices, noting that average screen time has plummeted from 2.5 minutes in 2004 to just 47 seconds today. \"A screen is not the world,\" he emphasized, \"but it says something about the world today, where attention has become a precious commodity and where we direct it has never mattered more.\"\n\nKing Abdullah lamented that many people have neglected the struggle of Palestinians and suggested that the diminishing attention span impacts how issues are handled at the UN. He argued that in the assembly, attention dictates which conflicts receive persistent diplomatic efforts and which are dismissed.\n\nAn earlier address by US President Donald Trump defended AI, dismissing growing unease among US voters about the technology. Despite recent polls indicating concerns, Trump emphasized AI's transformative potential and proposed rebranding it as \"superintelligence\" rather than \"artificial intelligence\". However, such rebranding may face resistance from tech experts, as the term \"superintelligence\" already connotes advanced cognitive abilities beyond human comprehension.\n\nTrump also dismissed calls for stricter AI regulations concerning cybersecurity, labor market impacts, and environmental concerns. His remarks precede the US midterm elections, where the popularity of AI-related issues, especially data centre construction, could influence voter sentiment. A recent poll from the University of Massachusetts Amherst revealed that 11% of Americans would support AI data centre construction in their communities, while 65% were opposed. Another NBC News poll found that US voters are increasingly rejecting unregulated AI and data center development.\n\nHowever, US voters' concerns about economic sluggishness and inflation have outweighed their apprehensions about AI. Trump's decision to attack Iran earlier this month has become increasingly unpopular. Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, also speaking at the UN General Assembly, advocated for a global framework governing AI, emphasizing the need to address cybersecurity and labor market threats. He stressed the urgency of drafting a UN international convention on AI and the importance of combating disinformation on social media.",
  "summary": "Jordan 's King Abdullah II on Tuesday warned that technology is causing attention spans to dwindle, which could affect geopolitical stability. Technology, particularly artificial intelligence , was a major focus of King Abdullah and US President Donald Trump's speeches at the UN General Assembly in New York. “The scale of knowledge and the speed of change are unprecedented,” Jordan's monarch…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}