Logging Off: The Human Cost of Our Digital World

(Hardback)

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Description

We live in a digital world. In the 30 years since we've been online, we've created connections, crossed boundaries and discovered new worlds. We have done things generations before us could never have imagined.

But at what cost

Growing up as a Gen Z, Adele spent endless hours as a teenager on social media, shaping her view of herself and the world. As a freelance journalist, she has used her social media platforms and digital technology to develop a career in an unfamiliar and competitive industry, benefitting from the opportunities that these spaces can offer. But after losing her sister to online harms, she realised that our current digital world is failing us.

We are an anxious and discontent generation. Our lived realities and our online vulnerabilities are inextricably linked, and this means big business for social media tycoons who want us to stay scrolling at any cost. As Big Tech barons make their billions, capitalising on our emotions, instincts, insecurities and desires, everyday people are losing out.

From workers being fired by algorithms, to online forums dedicated to revenge porn and encouraging suicide, to censorship of marginalised voices and the turbulent impacts of AI, Logging Off reveals that our digital world is currently fuelling crises that only empathy, agency and humanity can resolve. This book is a call for a radical reclamation of our digital world, for a more humane future that empowers us all.

Reviews

Not everyone could turn a horrific family tragedy into a smart, compulsive and urgent read about the dangers of social media, but this is exactly what Adele Walton has achieved with her much-needed book Logging Off. She blends together scientific and social research with personal experience to bring to life the impact social media has on all our lives. As the first generation to grow up with social media throughout their childhoods, we urgently need to listen to voices like Adele's if we are to tackle the harms of this technology, while also recognising the joys and connections the internet can bring. * Sian Norris, author of BODIES UNDER SIEGE *
Logging Off is a deeply moving and powerfully argued expose of the technologies that have come to dominate our lives. Walton masterfully demonstrates that these technologies are not neutral - they are designed to enrich their owners and harm their users. You won't look at your screens in the same way after reading this book. * Grace Blakely, author of VULTURE CAPITALISM *
Logging Off is a life-saving book. It's an essential deep-dive into the digital world that everyone needs to read. An important, fascinating, heart-filled page-turner of a debut. * Mikaela Loach, author of IT'S NOT THAT RADICAL *
A harrowing but important read from a member of the rising generation of young people who've experienced first hand the dangers of out of control tech companies and killer algorithms. * Carole Cadwalladr, the Guardian *

Motivated by the most tragic of circumstances, Adele Zeynep Walton combines a compendium of contemporary horror stories with a breadth of well-referenced expert testimony, to produce a vital commentary for anyone wanting to better understand our dangerous digital world.
Logging Off offers a thought-provoking digital stocktake, a must read for concerned parents and for all who want to more safely navigate the technological perils we all face today.

* Ian Russell MBE, Chair Molly Rose Foundation *
Logging Off is a necessary and urgent account of the human cost of social media. Adele does an extraordinary job of helping understand the preventable harm that young people are experiencing. If you are a parent, lawmaker, or work in social media, Logging Off is a must read. * Arturo Bejar, Meta whistleblower *
Logging Off is a refreshing wake up to reclaim the beauty of life and authenticity of human connection. While social media has a powerful influence on our relationships and how we see the world, Adele Zeynep Walton successfully argues that we need to reassert our own agency over technology. This book is a much-need clarion call to see the humanity in others, imbue our actions with empathy, and know when to log off so we can turn on a fulfilling life. * David Ryan Polgar, Founder & President of All Tech Is Human *

Author Bio

Adele Zeynep Walton is a British Turkish journalist, online safety campaigner and the author of Logging Off: The Human Cost of Our Digital World. Adele has channelled a personal loss into advocating for a safer digital world for young people. She is a member of Bereaved Families for Online Safety and a youth ambassador for People Vs Big Tech.

As a freelance journalist Adele has written for The Independent, the i, Dazed, i-D, VICE, Metro, The Big Issue, Jacobin, Open Democracy, Tribune, Huck, gal-dem, The New Arab and more. Her articles have been translated into Brazilian Portuguese, German, Italian, Swedish, Turkish and Spanish, and she has featured on Times Radio, LBC Radio, Sky News, BBC Radio Scotland and Channel 4 News and more. Between 2023-2024 Adele was DAZED's first ever political book columnist, where she has interviewed authors including Naomi Klein, Emma Dabiri, Vicky Spratt and more.

She is also the co-founder of Logging Off Club, which brings people together offline at phone free events to reconnect and promote connection, curiosity and wellness