The genius behind Apple, the late and great Steve Jobs, still continues to marvel us with his intelligence and way of life. Nick Bilton, a technology journalist, published an article through the New York Times titled "Steve Jobs was a low-tech parent" and shocked readers as he stated how the former CEO limited his children's gadget use. Also included in the article were several agreements from tech chief executives and venture capitalists as they, too, also do not condone excessive use of smartphones and computers.
Bilton starts the article by stating the Jobs was known for calling journalists out if they write something false or off about any of his new products. Last 2010, Bilton was one of those writers who caught Jobs' attention after "chewing" him out after he had written about an "iPad shortcoming". The "iPad" was just released that year as the company's very first tablet. After asking Jobs if his own children enjoyed the iPad, his response was nothing more than confusing. Jobs tells him "They haven't used it," continuing with "we limit how much technology our kids use at home." Why would someone who created something so entertaining, convenient and addictive refuse to let their own children enjoy his creation?
With a world that revolves around technology, Bilton received the same reaction from tech CEOs and creators of famous social media applications who are parents themselves; praising their parenting style by allowing only a few hours a week of gadget use. "They strictly limit their children's screen time, often banning all gadgets on school nights, and allocating ascetic time limits on weekends.", Bilton writes. Company big wigs such as Blogger founder Evan Williams, Twitter chief executive Dick Costolo and Facebook adviser Ali Partovi all gave strong opinions about the use of gadgets at some saying there should be a difference between time spent being "consumed" and time spent "creating" on their screens. Another important note was that their children should not be completely banned from using these gadgets but a decent amount of time tinkering can probably prevent "adverse effects", as one of if his interviewees said "If you don't let your kids have some exposure to this stuff, what problems does it cause later?"
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