Max Stossel Speaks on Developing Healthy Relationships with Technology

Max Stossel, a former media strategist with Instagram, spoke to the Upper School about the impacts of social media. His presentation was titled “We Are Sneaking into Your Brains,” and asked the students to ponder this question: Are they using technology or is technology using them?

Max Stossel first came to Kent Place during the COVID pandemic, when he prompted students to take a long, hard look at how they’re existing ethically online. His visit, and the conversations that followed, was the impetus to launch REBOOT, a group run for students, by students that considers ethical boundaries when using technology. 

“Max Stossel has an incredible ability to impact students; he speaks their language and can relate to their experiences,” says Karen Rezach, Director of the Ethics Institute. “He brings awareness to them of the very manipulative and addictive nature of social media sites. Then he challenges them to not allow their technology to control them — rather, for them to control it.”

Last week’s presentation was fast-paced and informative. Social media platforms are designed like addictive slot machines, Max said. “Users are encouraged to constantly check the app, over and over again, for a small ‘hit’ of happiness when they see content that piques their interest. Web developers are designing social media apps to be like games, where users have points or streaks to keep them addicted to using their platforms.” 

He challenged students to take a few small steps to reorient their relationship with technology. For example, he encouraged students to move their conversations off Snapchat to more traditional messaging apps, to bring about more dialogue and interaction. A long line of students waited to speak to Max after his thought-provoking presentation. 

Later, the Tapping In podcast group interviewed Max and asked how to best orient young people’s relationships with technology. You can listen to their episode here. 

“I look forward to seeing more lasting impacts from his time at Kent Place this year,” says Dr. Rezach.

At the end of the week, the Upper School and the Ethics Institute invited parents to an Empowered Parent Series event that featured a video from Max Stossel, as well as a student and faculty panel about technology and the use of social media. If you’d like to access the video, please e-mail ethics@kentplace.org.