1

Is a digital detox the only solution to our technology troubles?

POL 106: Contemporary Challenges to Democracy: Democracy in the Social

Media Age

Professor Ronald Deibert

By Candace Sara Ciju

TA: Abdus Shuman

Tutorial 0602

Saturday, December 7th, 2022

2

On August 23, 2020, a police officer in Kenosha, Wisconsin, shot a Black man named

Jacob Blake seven times in the back in front of his family. After learning about the shooting,

Black Lives Matter protesters flocked to the streets of Kenosha. The self-described militia

known as the Kenosha Guard issued a "call to arms" on its Facebook page, in which

participants declared their intention to commit vigilante violence against the protestors

(Marantz 2020). The page, which was launched on June 2, had approximately 3,500

followers at the time (Paul and Menn 2020). More than 400 users flagged the Kenosha

Guard's page, but despite Facebook's new policies prohibiting the activities of "organisations

and movements that have demonstrated significant risks to public safety," including "US-

based militia organisations," moderators ignored the page and left it operational (Marantz

2020). On August 25, a 17-year-old with a semi-automatic weapon arrived in Kenosha and

shot three protesters, killing two of them (Marantz 2020). Despite extensive regulation,

Facebook was unable to bring the Kenosha Guard down, resulting in the deaths of two

protestors. These and countless other examples demonstrate the ineffectiveness of policy

intervention in regulating social media platforms. Is this to imply that a complete "retreat,"

"disconnection," or "digital detoxification," as it is colloquially known, is the only way to

address the challenges posed by digital technology? In this paper, I argue that digital

detoxification is not the only solution to our social media troubles as it is unviable and not a

long-term solution. In the first paragraph, I discuss how digital detox has only temporary

effects and cannot lead to a permanent lifestyle change. In the second paragraph, I discuss the

reasons for the "retreat movement," and why it is popular but not feasible to practise globally.

In the following paragraph, I argue how, even if you detox and delete your online presence,

you will still be under surveillance. I conclude this paper by emphasising the importance of

creating a new system that does not rely on personal surveillance technologies. 
3

'Digital detoxification' refers to a period of time during which an individual

voluntarily refrains from using cloud-based technologies such as smartphones and social

media platforms (Schell 2022). Although a digital detox can provide immediate benefits, it

cannot be maintained as a lifestyle. A study published in the Journal of Experimental

Psychology explains this phenomenon (Brailovskaia et al. 2022). 619 participants were

divided into three groups, each of which followed a set of rules for using smartphones for

seven days: a control group that used smartphones as usual; a group that abstained from all

cell phone use (digital detox); and a group that reduced daily smartphone use by one hour

(Brailovskaia et al. 2022). The results of the study revealed that, while the abstinence group

experienced some benefits, they did not last, demonstrating that a digital detox is only a

temporary solution. The third group, however, which reduced smartphone use by one hour

per day, saw long-term benefits. Both groups had lower levels of smartphone use intensity,

depressive and anxiety symptoms, and increase in overall life satisfaction, but the reduction

group had larger and more consistent effects on nearly all of these metrics. Furthermore, in

terms of dropout rates, the reduction group outperformed the other groups by a wide margin

(Brailovskaia et al. 2022). The word "detox" suggests addiction and reliance, which take

away a person's ability to make decisions and exercise sound judgement on their well-being

(Jones 2018). In addition to being restrictive and needless, social media abstention produces

a prison-like atmosphere wherein a person can only manage their conduct when their sources

of diversion are removed (Jones 2018). Long-term abstinence is impractical and depriving

oneself of web - based communication might actually have a negative effect on overall

wellness. We need to regularly ‘detach’ from technology, not detox. ‘Detaching’ entails

retaining your gadgets and social networks, but using them sparingly or only when absolutely

required, and within a set limit. Detachment from technology puts the user in complete
4

control, allowing them to be "in control of their technology" rather than the other way around

(Jones 2018).

Proponents of "digital detox" argue that it is the solution to all problems caused by

technology, not just social media addiction. The most well-known example of retreat is the

#DeleteFacebook campaign, which began as a viral opposition against Facebook's data

surveillance policies but has since evolved into a call to reject surveillance capitalism

(Deibert 2021). Recognizing the rising demands generated by the retreat movement, social

media platforms have begun to incorporate tools to aid in the digital detox, such as Apple's

Screen Time notifications (Deibert 2021). In lieu of allowing gadgets on their property, new

age camps and resorts like Camp Grounded in California offer clients pricey combinations of

yoga, mindfulness, and deep meditation as part of their digital detox packages (Colin 2013).

These retreat recommendations are based on a well-known type of romanticism, a call to get

"back to nature," which is appealing on many levels. It is true that we need to re-establish is

our relationship with nature, and it is necessary for our well-being to take the

occasional break from digital media. It's okay if a handful of small communities completely

disconnect or unplug. But what if everyone actually went off the grid? What would become

of the world? We now reside in a "global village" as a result of centuries of industrial

technological advancement (Deibert 2021). Buckminster Fuller famously referred to this

environment as "Spaceship Earth," where we are all interdependent and rely on each other

(Fuller 1969). Going back to a past without digital technology is impossible.

Although digital technology has brought about a variety of challenges for the world,

including issues with algorithmic bias and mass surveillance, it is apparent that it has also

brought people closer together by blurring international borders. Despite lockdowns, they

5

facilitated communication among people during the COVID-19 pandemic. Population

movement data has undoubtedly been critical in tracing the path of the virus and assisting

governments in deciding where to focus limited resources (Deibert 2021). These beneficial

uses of ICT technologies would be lost if we all entirely disconnected. We need to develop

alternate ways to arrange our communications environment since simply ditching the

technology is not at all a realistic solution for humanity as a whole. Even if you discard all of

your devices, social media apps, and digital presence, you will still be monitored. Facebook

and other social media have “shadow profiles” of people who don't even have social media

accounts (Deibert 2021). CCTV cameras are found everywhere. One cannot escape

surveillance. Thus, if you still want to detox from the digital world, you won't be able to do

so.

Because digital technologies have become so ingrained in everything we do, it is

absurd to expect us to be able to reverse the clock completely. To manage our world and our

global affairs, we need a transparent and secure global communication system. It's just that

the current model, that relies on personal data surveillance, works against those objectives.

Therefore, outright rejection of digital technology is both unnecessary and fruitless.

6

Bibliography

Marantz, Andrew. “Why Facebook Can't Fix Itself.” The New Yorker, October 12, 2020.

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/10/19/why-facebook-cant-fix-itself.

Paul, Katie, and Joseph Menn. “Facebook Removes 'Kenosha Guard' Page Following

Shooting.” Reuters. Thomson Reuters, August 26, 2020.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-global-race-usa-wisconsin-facebook-

idUSKBN25M2JD.

Deibert, Ronald. Reset: Reclaiming the Internet for Civil Society. Toronto: CELA, 2021.

Schell, Bernadette H.. 2022. Digital Detox: Why Taking a Break from Technology Can

Improve Your Well-Being. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, LLC. Accessed December 8, 2022.

ProQuest Ebook Central.

Brailovskaia, Julia, Jasmin Delveaux, Julia John, Vanessa Wicker, Alina Noveski, Kim

Seokyoung, Holger Schillack, and Jürgen Margraf. “Finding the ‘Sweet Spot’ of

Smartphone Use: Reduction or Abstinence to Increase Well-Being and Healthy

Lifestyle?! An Experimental Intervention Study.” Journal of experimental psychology:

Applied. U.S. National Library of Medicine, April 7, 2022.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35389685/.

Jones, AJ. “Why the Digital Detox Should Die.” Medium. Medium, September 24, 2018.

https://medium.com/@aj_jones/the-digital-detox-is-dead-but-we-still-need-to-use-

technology-more-wisely-31f7964a96d8.
7

Colin, Chris. “Into the Woods and Away from Technology.” The New Yorker. The New

Yorker, June 20, 2013. https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/into-

the-woods-and-away-from-technology.

“Fuller, R. B. (1969). Operating manual for spaceship Earth. Southern Illinois University

Press.”