The Tech Exit

Summary of The Tech Exit: A Practical Guide to Freeing Kids and Teens from Smartphones by Clare Morell (published June 3, 2025):

Clare Morell, a technology-policy expert and parent, argues that digital devices—especially smartphones, social media, tablets, and video games—are inherently harmful to children and cannot be safely managed through screen-time limits or parental controls. Morell advocates for a radical yet systematic “Tech Exit”: delaying or entirely avoiding handing children access to such technologies during childhood. Drawing from dozens of interviews with families, she outlines how screen-free children often enjoy richer friendships, outdoor play, mental health, and emotional resilience—contrary to fears of isolation

Ethics & Public Policy Center. Morell introduces the FEAST roadmap—Find other families, Explain and Educate, Adopt alternatives, Set clear family rules, and Trade screens for real-world pursuits—to support sustained screen-free living within a community context. She frames the issue not as moderation but as abstinence: digital technologies function more like addictive substances (her term: “digital fentanyl”) than harmless treats, undermining self-control and displacing real-life engagement. Rather than retreating to nostalgic pasts, Morell presents this as a practical modern lifestyle. She encourages families to experiment with a 30‑day digital detox, and then adopt meaningful, embodied habits—cooking, service, outdoor play—to replace screen use while navigating school, peer, and institutional pressures. She also urges collective solutions: building supportive “counter‑communities” of like-minded families to reinforce norms and advocate alternatives in schools and local policy.

In short, The Tech Exit offers parents a bold, research‑grounded, and actionable plan for reclaiming childhood from the grip of digital devices, reclaiming attention, connection, and well‑being for the next generation.