Screen Sanity

Cara Bohon

On this episode of Screen Sanity, we begin with Krista Boan sharing a little about our organization’s name change — from START to Screen Sanity.  Then, she’s joined by Cara Bohan. Cara is the Vice President of Clinical Programs at Equip, a treatment center for families facing eating disorders. They talk about the pressure the digital world applies on our kids related to body image. They talk about unrealistic expectations, important conversations parents can initiate, and what Cara has lear...

Heath Wilson and Joey Odom

Like so many of us, Heath Wilson and Joey Odom have experienced the challenges of life with screens. Addictive games and clever algorithms keep drawing us back to our smartphones and away from the people, projects, and work that matters far more than our distractions. That struggle led them to create Aro, a new platform blending analog and digital technology to make it easier than ever to put our phones down and experience life uninterrupted.  On this episode of Screen Sanity, START co-foun...

Felicia Wu Song

Chris McKenna

One of the first questions parents ask when they buy their child a smartphone is, “How do I keep them safe? What are the tools? What are the apps? How do I know what they’re getting into?” These questions have been top-of-mind for START co-founder Krista Boan, as she continues to navigate the introduction of a smartphone into her own child’s life. Today on the podcast, she’s joined by Chris McKenna, founder of Protect Young Eyes. He’s a regular voice in news and commentary about digital saf...

Krista Boan and Adam Reck

At START, we often talk about how this generation of parents is breaking new ground. Smartphones have changed our social and cultural landscape, and they’ve given rise to unprecedented challenges for parents as they discern how to introduce them to their kids.  For START co-founder Krista Boan, these aren’t abstract questions. From the beginning, she knew smartphones were in her kids’ future, and 2021 was the year she took the leap with her oldest daughter. On this episode of the podcast, ...

The Smartphone Plunge | Krista Boan and Adam Reck

At START, we often talk about how this generation of parents is breaking new ground. Smartphones have changed our social and cultural landscape, and they’ve given rise to unprecedented challenges for parents as they discern how to introduce them to their kids.  For START co-founder Krista Boan, these aren’t abstract questions. From the beginning, she knew smartphones were in her kids’ future, and 2021 was the year she took the leap with her oldest daughter. On this episode of the podcast, ...

Max Stossel

Max Stossel is an award-winning poet, filmmaker, and speaker. He is also the Head of Education & Content for the Center for Humane Technology, an organization of former tech insiders and CEOs dedicated to realigning technology with humanity’s best interests. If the Center is unfamiliar to you, one of their products probably is not – the Netflix documentary The Social Dilemma, an exploration of the hazards of online life for the flourishing and well-being of our kids.  Max’s work has brought...

Our Social Dilemma | Max Stossel

Max Stossel is an award-winning poet, filmmaker, and speaker. He is also the Head of Education & Content for the Center for Humane Technology, an organization of former tech insiders and CEOs dedicated to realigning technology with humanity’s best interests. If the Center is unfamiliar to you, one of their products probably is not – the Netflix documentary The Social Dilemma, an exploration of the hazards of online life for the flourishing and well-being of our kids.  Max’s work has brought...

Angie Daniels

The real goal that lies behind setting boundaries around technology and screen time is much bigger than any one issue. We want kids to flourish and to have thriving relationships and experiences. Our guest on this week’s podcast has dedicated her life to that work. Angie Daniels is the Program Manager for The Hope Center on the east side of Kansas City, Missouri. There, she works to serve kids in an urban community in the heart of the city. From Pre-K to High School, they work to provide a ...

Phone-Free Zones | Angie Daniels

The real goal that lies behind setting boundaries around technology and screen time is much bigger than any one issue. We want kids to flourish and to have thriving relationships and experiences. Our guest on this week’s podcast has dedicated her life to that work. Angie Daniels is the Program Manager for The Hope Center on the east side of Kansas City, Missouri. There, she works to serve kids in an urban community in the heart of the city. From Pre-K to High School, they work to provide a ...

Porn + Predators | Rob and Zareen Cope

Few thoughts are as daunting to parents as the potential impact, damage, and prevalence of pornography in the lives of modern kids. While we’d like to think it mostly lives in hard-to-reach corners of the internet, the reality is that it’s only a few clicks away. But rather than let that fact frighten us away from the topic, we want to encourage parents to approach it straight-on, and our guests on this episode of Screen Sanity have done excellent work in helping us consider how to do so.  ...

Rob and Zareen Cope

Few thoughts are as daunting to parents as the potential impact, damage, and prevalence of pornography in the lives of modern kids. While we’d like to think it mostly lives in hard-to-reach corners of the internet, the reality is that it’s only a few clicks away. But rather than let that fact frighten us away from the topic, we want to encourage parents to approach it straight-on, and our guests on this episode of Screen Sanity have done excellent work in helping us consider how to do so.  ...

Brady Smith

Listeners may know Brady Smith and his wife Tiffani Thiessen from their work in film and television. What you may not know is that they’re passionate about helping families reassess their relationship with screens.    In 2019, they published You’re Missing It, a children’s book that’s a cautionary tale about what happens when parents find themselves glued to their phones. During the months of COVID lockdown, Brady created a hit Instagram show called Random Acts of Drawness, inviting kids t...

Bring Screens to Life | Brady Smith

Listeners may know Brady Smith and his wife Tiffani Thiessen from their work in film and television. What you may not know is that they’re passionate about helping families reassess their relationship with screens.    In 2019, they published You’re Missing It, a children’s book that’s a cautionary tale about what happens when parents find themselves glued to their phones. During the months of COVID lockdown, Brady created a hit Instagram show called Random Acts of Drawness, inviting kids t...

Social Media + Girls | Amanda Mozea

What are the unique pressures that come with social media for girls? How can parents help give them a “learners permit” for online life? How do we think about our own relationships with social media and how it affects our kids?  On this week’s episode, START co-founder Krista Boan sits down with Amanda Mozea to talk about these questions and more. Amanda is the Education Outreach Manager of Media Girls (www.mediagirls.org), where she and her team work to equip parents and girls to better un...

Amanda Mozea

What are the unique pressures that come with social media for girls? How can parents help give them a “learners permit” for online life? How do we think about our own relationships with social media and how it affects our kids?  On this week’s episode, START co-founder Krista Boan sits down with Amanda Mozea to talk about these questions and more. Amanda is the Education Outreach Manager of Media Girls (www.mediagirls.org), where she and her team work to equip parents and girls to better un...

Scott Bacon

Scott Bacon is the principal of Blue Valley High School in Overland Park, Kansas. On this episode of the podcast, Scott sits down with START’s Krista Boan to talk about the impact of screen time and technology on student life at Blue Valley. They discuss the pressures of social media, school policies on phone usage and access, and the ways that remote learning and ZOOM fatigue have forced changes in those policies in recent months. You’ll hear real life wisdom from someone who spends every d...

Screen Healthy Schools | Scott Bacon

Scott Bacon is the principal of Blue Valley High School in Overland Park, Kansas. On this episode of the podcast, Scott sits down with START’s Krista Boan to talk about the impact of screen time and technology on student life at Blue Valley. They discuss the pressures of social media, school policies on phone usage and access, and the ways that remote learning and ZOOM fatigue have forced changes in those policies in recent months. You’ll hear real life wisdom from someone who spends every d...

Your Brain on Screens | Susan Dunaway

Susan Dunaway is a neurotherapist whose practice has explored the many connections between screens and mental health. On this episode of the podcast, she talks with START co-founder and host Krista Boan about the science of neurotherapy and the effect of screen time and social media on the brain, including the remarkably important roles dopamine and oxytocin play in health and well-being.  She also speaks from personal experience, describing her own family’s practices, what she’s learned an...

Susan Dunaway

Susan Dunaway is a neurotherapist whose practice has explored the many connections between screens and mental health. On this episode of the podcast, she talks with START co-founder and host Krista Boan about the science of neurotherapy and the effect of screen time and social media on the brain, including the remarkably important roles dopamine and oxytocin play in health and well-being.  She also speaks from personal experience, describing her own family’s practices, what she’s learned an...

Amy Crouch

On this week’s podcast, host Krista Boan sits down with Amy Crouch to talk about what it was like growing up in a tech-wise family. Amy is a 19-year-old student at Cornell University and the co-author with her dad, Andy Crouch, of My Tech Wise Life: Growing Up and Making Choices in a World of Devices. They talk about the challenges of being the only kid who doesn’t have a smart phone or doesn’t use social media, but they also talk about the rewards of those decisions and the insulation it p...

My Tech-Wise Life | Amy Crouch

On this week’s podcast, host Krista Boan sits down with Amy Crouch to talk about what it was like growing up in a tech-wise family. Amy is a 19-year-old student at Cornell University and the co-author with her dad, Andy Crouch, of My Tech Wise Life: Growing Up and Making Choices in a World of Devices. They talk about the challenges of being the only kid who doesn’t have a smart phone or doesn’t use social media, but they also talk about the rewards of those decisions and the insulation it p...

Digital Health | Tracy Foster

On the first episode of our podcast, host Krista Boan sits down with Tracy Foster. Krista and Tracy are co-founders of START, which is short for Stand Together And Rethink Technology. On this episode, they discuss the foundational ideas of START, and they ways they hope to encourage families to reexamine the ways that kids and parents interact with technology. They also talk about real-life examples of the challenges parents face when introducing technology and apps, and in particular, how t...

Tracy Foster

On the first episode of our podcast, host Krista Boan sits down with Tracy Foster. Krista and Tracy are co-founders of START, which is short for Stand Together And Rethink Technology. On this episode, they discuss the foundational ideas of START, and they ways they hope to encourage families to reexamine the ways that kids and parents interact with technology. They also talk about real-life examples of the challenges parents face when introducing technology and apps, and in particular, how t...