Bugger!
Reading newspapers was not then, nor is it not now, "antisocial" behavior. Virtually no one read (or reads) newspapers for 6, 8, or 10 (or more) hours a day. You also can't define "antisocial" as any action that happens to temporarily preclude socializing. If young people were only on their phones for an hour a day, the impacts would be dramatically different.
It is true that there is a great deal of a form of social interaction on phones, but the original, and widely accepted (and relevant) definition of "antisocial" is not being sociable or wanting the company of others. I would argue that there is a rather large, and important distinction between socializing on-line, and face to face. Mobile phone use has undoubtedly had a meaningful impact in extending the former, and reducing the latter.
Hi @Tony C. It is rather nice that my wry little contribution sparked off a real discussion from you about the impact of mobile phones on today's world. They are undoubtedly addictive devices - mine is a constant companion that provides access to knowledge on things I want to google, instant messaging from family and friends, weather reports and so on. And as someone who remembers the days when we had to rely on public phone boxes when out and about, having the modern ability to call anyone at any time from anyplace (with signal access), I am glad to have them.
However I agree with your reservations. Dodging phone zombies in public places, trying to get kids to put the damn things away when we are having family gatherings, watching drivers wobble over the road while they look at their phones, and similar frustrations are familiar to all of us.
Comparing them with people reading newspapers is facetious, but it still made me smile.
Thanks. I wasn't in any way criticizing you, but merely commenting on the content, and what provoked my reaction was that many, if not most internet users, would probably think, at least initially, that the two are comparable.
While I obviously do have serious concerns about some of the impacts of mobile devices on societies, and on young people in particular, I am a heavy internet user, and something of a "digital nomad" these days. So I am ambivalent at worst, and have benefited in many ways from the digital (online) revolution.
Having said that, I completely disconnect whenever I leave the house, partly in order to provide some balance, and partly because I really have no interest in being distracted from the real world.