A Decade of Digital Wellbeing! #HalfTheStory Turns 10! 🎉✨🎈
What happens when you start a digital wellness movement in 2014?
How is it October?! 🎃
If you’ve been keeping up with us, you’ll know it’s been a monumental week for #HalfTheStory.
This edition is a bit special because it’s not just your typical rundown of trends and happenings in the digital world but hey! It’s #HalfTheStory’s 10TH BIRTHDAY🎂 🥳 For context, when #HalfTheStory was born, Ally and Olivia were just in elementary school. It’s safe to say that it’s been a rollercoaster and we’re so grateful that you are a part of our community. 🌍🤝
Keep reading to learn where we’re headed next! 👀
Today, which also happens to be International Day of the Girl, #HalfTheStory and Girls Inc. announced a new national digital wellness partnership for girls. By partnering with Girls Inc., we have a unique opportunity to address the pressing issue of digital wellness for young girls at scale, reaching high-opportunity communities across America🌟🌱
If you're not yet familiar with Girls Inc., they spent the past 160 years serving millions of girls across the United States and Canada—particularly girls from low-income communities and girls of color. Through this new partnership, Girls Inc. and #HalfTheStory will work together to equip girls with the tools needed to thrive in the digital age, while fostering healthier, more balanced relationships with technology.
Check out this awesome story in Vanity Fair to read more about the announcement and the surprise celebrity visit we hosted at Girls Inc. of Greater Santa Barbara!!
At #HalfTheStory, we look at both sides of the internet, so here are the latest trends and tips you should know and who knows…maybe watch out for 👇
🔥What’s Hot:
TikTok Dance Renaissance!!💃👯 TikTok dances are BACK! Back in the early days of TikTok, you couldn’t scroll more than two times without seeing a new dance on your For You Page. And now, after a few years, it seems like our passion for dance is on the rise. Nine times out of ten, TikTok dances are fun, happy, and drama-free trends that act as a little brain break during our scrolling.
Mental Health Positivity creators! 🫂✨ With October being World Mental Health Month, we wanted to highlight a few creators who have had positive impacts on our #HTS team. Harlan Cohen is a creator who makes GREAT videos for high schoolers and college students (and beyond!), about dealing with the various anxieties and issues they may face during their time as a student, or just in life. Check out his page, it will definitely boost your motivation!!😋
Mama, the past behind you💜 By now, you’ve probably seen a few familiar “brainrot” phrases accompanied by this emoji:💜 In the past week or so, people have been putting a spin on these memes to make them positive and uplifting (while still being funny). We absolutely love the message this has — positive trends don’t always have to be serious! Hundreds of commenters have expressed their appreciation for these videos, one user saying “Wait, why did I actually need to hear this?”.
👎What’s Not:
‘TraumaTok’ is not new, but it’s real.❤️🩹 And while it may be entertaining and “good” that people are being vulnerable with their mental health, it can also be triggering for people to watch. So next time you are thinking of posting, take a step back and be intentional about what you share.
Have you noticed recently that a lot of celebrities look less and less…human?👽 “Pillow face” is something that happens as a result of too much filler. With face and lip filler being very trendy, as well as Ozempic, many of our favorite celebrities have been sporting looks that are unattainable to the average person. Rather than setting the example of body positivity and embracing our natural looks, it feels like we’re moving further away from healthy self-image. Hopefully, “pillow face” acts as a wake-up call that too much plastic surgery is possible!
Liv Schmidt Got Banned?! ❌ A few months ago, we covered the “skinny girl” trend that was circling the internet and Liv Schmidt, one of the main creators of the trend recently got banned from TikTok for violating their Community Guidelines. This is a pretty big step because, in recent years, the topic of weight loss and dieting has only become more prevalent on social media, negatively impacting users, especially young people who are consuming this content. So, maybe this is a win for TikTok?
In honor of #HalfTheStory turning 10, we wanted to share a few of our words on how this organization and its mission have impacted our digital well-being journeys. 🫶
“Before discovering #HalfTheStory, I had never heard of the term “digital wellbeing” or any movement that was addressing the concerns between tech and mental health. Yet, once I got more invovled through the Teen Advisory Board, I realized that this issue is one that affects most people in my life, including myself. #HalfTheStory truly prioritizes the youth voice and has given me the tools to not only take agency over my tech use but to empower my peers to do so as well.”
- Ally Phan
My time here at #HTS has been filled with nothing but support, innovative projects, and grateful personnel all ready to truly make this world a better and safer place. I began as a content creator, and this allowed me to realize the emphasis HTS puts on teens in the center of what they do, through making their content, sending their messages, leading their projects, and taking on initiatives of their own. This allows HTS to deliver its message while educating the teenage population through their own peers, something I think many other organizations fail to realize the power of.
- Ahmed Othman
In 2022, my mom DMed me a video from #HalfTheStory, and my life changed. As a young woman, feeling alone, exhausted, and frustrated in her social life, my involvement in #HalfTheStory was instrumental to my self confidence. I learned to share my ideas unapologetically, advocate for myself and fellow young people, and understand that digital wellness should be just as important as other aspects of wellness. #HTS truly spotlights the voices of young people like myself, and creates a safe digital space to educate, advocate, and inspire.
- Olivia DeMartini
After working with #HalfTheStory for over two years, I have learned so much about digital wellness and how to advocate for digital equity in my school and local community. The opportunities #HTS has given me to educate and empower other young people like myself for a better digital future have been impactful and empowering. It has been such an honor to witness the growth of the #HTS movement over the years and the exponential positive impact #HTS is having on our local, national, and global communities.
- Bao Le
A few weeks ago, we launched our POSTS AREN’T VOTES campaign dedicated to empowering young voters to get off their screens and head to the polls! 🗳️✊ If you aren’t registered to vote yet, do it here, OR if you’re currently abroad, Olivia shares how you can make that happen!
Raise your hand if you were a Roblox kid ✋🤖. Recently, they partnered with Google to create the Be Internet Awesome World (learn more here!). In these games, you are immersed in a world full of “Internauts” who help you apply various internet safety skills through real-world scenarios. Players learn things from identifying phishing attempts to spreading kindness online! We gave it a try and let’s say this game-based learning approach is pretty cool! But to be honest, maybe you just need to be a 6-year-old iPad kid to get it…?
HAPPY (almost) HALLOWEEN!!!🎃 👻 🐈⬛ Need some inspiration to get in the autumn/spooky season mood? Take a listen to this October 31st essentials playlist! Enjoy plenty of candy and stay safe this Halloweekend! 🧡🖤
Thanks for scrolling along with us! Don’t leave us on read!…subscribe…we’ll be back next month! In the meantime, stay 'In The Loop’ daily by keeping up with us @halfthestory on all socials! 🤩
