An Instagram post from National Geographic as an example of the type of media I consume regularly.

Changes in my own media consumption do not vary significantly from those of others; certainly my use has increased. I have found myself scrolling through Instagram (see above), watching funny pet videos on Pinterest, and viewing independent short films on YouTube much more often than before the quarantine. When I wake up, take breaks from schoolwork, and before I go to sleep, I will pop on these sites for about 10 to 30 minutes. My film and TV consumption has also increased. I have finished three television seasons on Netflix and watched about five movies in the past four weeks alone. Though I maintain as regular a schedule as possible (ie. I ‘go to class’ or do classwork and research at the times I would pre-quarantine, and I maintain my regular exercise, meditation and meal routines), I still have an extra hour or two at the end of the day that I typically would not have before the pandemic. My hypothesis for this phenomenon is that the extra bits of time I used to bike and walk to class and to chat with students, professors and other friends on campus would together amount to those two hours I find free at the end of every quarantine day.

Sometimes I fill portions of those time slots with non-screen activities like playing or listening to music, writing or reading. But for the most part, I am behind a screen for a large chunk of those two hours, chatting with friends and family, on social media or watching movies and television. From these observations, I can reasonably conclude that screen time is an easy fall back for filling my free time. It is accessible, diverse in content and emotionally stimulating. Of course, one’s initial reaction to increased screen time is to scold oneself. But I have found that it’s not all that bad. I have discovered and become up to date with work by current and upcoming filmmakers. I have learned more about the second Queen Elizabeth’s life than I ever would have had I not finished two seasons of The Crown. I have even had more than one fits of belly-laughter from watching cats falling (safely) off kitchen counters on Pinterest. Yes, biking, walking and interacting with humans is certainly a preferred use of my time, but I cannot say than an extra few hours of screen time every day or so has been a complete waste of time.