The Screen Guardians Podcast
Helping parents navigate screen time, social media, and online safety — grounded in research, not fear. The Screen Guardians Podcast is your go-to resource for digital wellness and screen time guidance for kids and teens. Hosted by parent, educator, and digital health advocate Katie Longhauser, each episode helps families take the guesswork out of screen time, social media, apps, gaming, and online safety. This isn't about control — it's about empowerment. Because raising kids in the digital age doesn't come with a manual, but it should come with guidance you trust. Every episode is designed to help you: • Understand how developing brains respond to screens, dopamine, and social media • Get practical, research-backed strategies for building healthy digital habits • Navigate social media, gaming, online predators, and digital footprints with confidence • Feel calm and capable instead of overwhelmed and alone Whether you're parenting a toddler with a tablet or a teen with a group chat, you'll find honest conversations, expert interviews, and real tools you can use tonight. Not anti-technology. Pro-child. You don't have to navigate screen time alone. 🎧 Learn more, join the newsletter, and explore the Parent Portal at thescreenguardians.com
Episodes
In 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General declared loneliness and isolation a national epidemic — and teenagers are at the center of it. They're the most digitally connected generation in history, and one of the loneliest.
In this episode, host Katie sits down with Ryan Bevins and JP Claxton, the founder and co-founder of Fight Club — a confidential, peer-support organization for teens built on one pow...
Practical, no-fear ways to plan a low-screen, high-connection summer.
Summer screen time has a way of creeping up the moment the school-day structure disappears. In Episode 34 of the Screen Guardians Podcast, Katie sits down with mom of three and former labor-and-delivery nurse Janelle Campbell for an honest conversation about planning an intentional summer —...
A rural Kansas district shares what changed in classrooms and homes after going K–12 with The Screen Guardians.
What happens when an entire school district stops talking about screen time and actually does something about it?
...
If you've watched your kid trudge out of school carrying a Chromebook and felt a quiet knot in your stomach — you're not imagining it. Edtech in schools rolled out faster than the brain science behind it, and now the data is catching up.
In this episode, Katie Longhauser walks through how we got here, what's actually happening in kids' developing brains, and the clear next steps families and schools can take without fear, sha...
We talk a lot about what screens are doing to kids in the classroom. But here's a question we don't ask enough: who is teaching the teachers?
In this episode, host Katie sits down with Dr. Elizabeth Walter — an assistant professor at Rockhurst University who prepares the next generation of educators, a former English teacher, a mom of two elementary-age kids, and the academic vice president of her ch...
Why prevention has to come before the message ever hits your kid's phone.
What if prevention became the first layer of protection — not the second? In this solo episode of The Screen Guardians Podcast, founder Katie Longhauser walks through why we're so good at responding to harm but not as intentional about preventing it, and what that means for parents trying to figure out how to protect kids online in 2026.
From a Sunday-m...
You already know the screens are an issue. You feel it in the eye rolls. You feel it in the bedtime battles. You feel it in your own thumb as you scroll one more time before sleep. Raising healthy kids in a digital age isn't about removing devices — it's about raising kids who actually know how to use them. In this episode, clinical psychologist Dr. Shreya Hessler returns to The Screen Guardians podcast ...
If you've ever found yourself yelling "put the phone down!" while simultaneously scrolling your own device, you're not alone. Intentional parenting in a digital world is one of the biggest challenges families face today — and most of us are figuring it out as we go.
On a recent episode of The Screen Guardians Podcast, host Katie Longhauser sat do...
If you've ever handed your toddler a tablet just to get through dinner — or noticed your teenager retreating to their room for hours on end, scrolling and silent — you're not alone. Most of us feel it. Something is off. But connecting the dots between our kids' screens and their emotional wellbeing can feel murky, even overwhelming.
In Episode 27 of the Screen Guardians Podcast, host Katie sits...
Parenting kids in the digital age is incredibly hard. We are the first generation to raise children in the most digitally saturated environment in human history. With teens averaging more than seven hours of recreational screen use per day, many parents worry about sleep disruption, anxiety, and attention fragmentation. You might be wondering how to protect your kids without completely isolating them. The good news is that you do n...
In an era where our lives are intertwined with screens, the concept of a digital detox has emerged as both a necessity and a revelation.
Have you ever wondered how stepping away from your devices might reshape your emotional landscape? This is the journey that students at Loyola University embarked on, guided by the insightful Dr. Shreya Hessler.
He...
An in-depth conversation with a veteran superintendent on why digital safety isn't optional—and how a rural Kansas district is leading by example.
When I first sat down with Paul Larkin, superintendent of Syracuse USD 494 in Western Kansas, I wasn't expecting a conversation that would stay with me for days.
There was no script. No sweeping rhetoric. Just truth—clear, steady, and hard-won.
Paul has served in public educ...
I want to start with a story. Not one from my childhood—but from today.
Last week, I stood shoulder-to-shoulder with a group of parents, educators, and advocates at the Kansas State Capitol. It wasn't a polished, pretty press moment. It was real and gritty—honest words in wood-paneled hearing rooms, the air thick with both urgency and hope. In front of lawmakers, we made the case for something simple, but increasingly r...
In one of the most grounded and deeply human conversations we've had the honor to be part of, Kevin and I sat down with Dr. Currie Myers—America's Criminologist—for an episode that reached well beyond crime statistics and research papers.
It reached into the heart of why we do this work.
Because behind every war...
In recent years, the conversation around reducing screen time in schools has moved from quiet concern to active policy change. Educators, parents, and mental health professionals are paying closer attention to how constant tech use impacts student focus, emotional regulation, and classroom engagement.
At the heart of this shift is a deeper...
This episode explores the powerful connection between digital learning and brain development, featuring insights from neurotherapist Susan Dunaway. From screen-based reading to educational apps in early childhood, we examine how technology in schools may be reshaping cognitive growth, memory, and emotional regulation in ways parents and educators ca...
When a kindergartener walks into their classroom, the space is built for them. The chairs are small. The crayons are thick. The books are softbound and full of pictures. Slowly, over the years, their world expands—more words, more tools, more responsibility as their brains and bodies are ready for it.
But when it comes to technology in schools, something is off.
We're handing our youngest students open access to the digital e...
I've always believed in the power of a story—especially when it comes from someone who's lived every moment of it.
That's why I invited Ben Tracy onto the Screen Guardians platform. Ben isn't just a digital safety advocate.
He's a man who ran across the United States—3,100 miles, 125 days, 120 marathons—al...
This heartfelt episode explores how school-issued devices can quietly expose children to harmful content—and what parents can do to stay informed and involved.
Sometimes parenting in a digital world feels less like walking a line—and more like walking a tightrope. No net. No guarantees. Just hope that we've done enough to protect them.
Recently, I sat in conversation with two deeply thoughtful parents and my co-host, De...
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