Author: Starshine Roshell

Jury Finds Meta and Google Knowingly Harmed Kids April 2, 2026 Santa Barbara teen Lola Leachman admits she’s addicted to social media. “I can’t stop,” says the 16-year-old, who spends several hours a day on TikTok and Instagram. “I know I have a problem and I should try to limit myself … toget off my…

Who Cares Which Corporation Owns Your News and Entertainment? You Will ― Very Soon June 11, 2026 The English language includes a few phrases so yawny and banal that their casual utterance can induce instant snoring. “Cryptocurrency.” “Bird-watching.” “Sleep score.” For most people, “media conglomerate,” “horizontal merger,” and “parent company” do the same. We hear…

Should You Be Seeking Health Advice from AI? May 7, 2026 Some people fear AI. Some resent it. And some can’t welcome it fast enough, having waited our whole lives to live the lazy, technicolor, robot-assisted existence we were promised on The Jetsons. But whatever your stance, odds are good you’ve asked ChatGPT about a freaky…

This Expert on Political Division Drops a Truth Bomb March 19, 2026 Tania Israel is about to blow your mind. At least, she blew mine during a recent chat about the fractured fricking ideology of our over-angered, underinformed nation. Tania’s a friend; we share a love of Taco Tuesdays and ’80s new wave music. She’s…

Believing Nothing Is Not an Option. Here’s Who to Trust ― and Why February 26, 2026 I recently spoke at a high school about how to avoid falling for disinformation. A student stood up and proudly announced, “Don’t worry — we don’t believe anything we see online. Literally. Not a word.” And an unexpected chill crawled down…

What Was the Point of Doctoring This Particular Photograph of Nekima Levy Armstrong? February 5, 2026 Attacks on professional journalists were aggressive in recent weeks. The FBI raided Washington Post government reporter Hannah Natanson’s personal home, seizing her phone, watch, and computers — without charging her with any crime. And CNN’s Don Lemon was arrested while…

A New Column on How to Pluck Truth from the Torrent of Propaganda January 22, 2026 How do we even know what to believe anymore? As a media literacy educator, that’s the question I hear most often. You may remember me as the columnist who wrote about parenting, couplehood, and hot takes on cultural phenomena…