When everyone is staring at a screen, a certain silence descends upon a family dinner table. Not serene silence, but rather the absence of something that was once present. As part of a campaign that, on paper, seems almost too easy to implement—put your phone in a locker, spend time with your kids, and see what happens—parents from all over Spain described precisely that feeling when they gathered at shopping centers across the nation. Apparently, more happened than anyone had anticipated.
The “Zero Screens Zone” campaign was run by Castellana Properties, a company that oversees shopping centers in Portugal and Spain, with the tagline “Disconnect to Reconnect.” In 11 locations, more than 1,300 families willingly turned in their devices and took part in games, workshops, and expert-led conversations. Together, they amassed almost 95,500 screen-free minutes, or more than two months if you’re counting. It’s also difficult to ignore the fact that families appeared eager to unplug. Just that particular detail says something worth considering.
This is not solely a Spanish issue. Screens have been openly referred to as “a lasting alteration” to children’s health and intellectual development by French medical organizations, such as the societies for pediatrics, ophthalmology, and child psychiatry. They were direct in their open letter to the government: kids under six should not be exposed to any screens at all. not less exposure. exposure without supervision. Not one. They likened letting a toddler cross a highway by themselves to leaving a child alone with a screen. Stark words, but they hit the mark.
Similar beliefs served as the basis for Spain’s campaign. Pediatricians and child psychologists who participated in the roundtables, including prominent figures like Rafa Guerrero and Lucía Galán Bertrand, directed discussions toward structure rather than guilt. The consensus was cautious and somewhat relieving for weary parents: children’s excessive screen time isn’t actually a sign of poor parenting. It’s about work schedules that don’t allow for flexibility, exhaustion that makes the phone the most convenient babysitter in the room, and social settings where every other child has a smartphone. It is useless to act as though there isn’t structural pressure.
Experts were straightforward about where change needs to start, though. Instead of using app timers or posting rules on refrigerators, adults should set an example of different behavior. Researchers consistently find that parents who cut back on their own screen time have a greater impact than any household policy. Depending on how frequently you’ve reached for your phone during a conversation with your child, that can be both encouraging and subtly unsettling to hear.
Parents frequently stated that their biggest fear was not screen time per se, but rather the content they were unable to view. Algorithms reveal content that no one looked for. mood swings that appeared for no apparent reason. the gradual substitution of the appearance of presence for real conversation. Even though a parent and their adolescent are seated in the same room, there seems to be a huge gap between them.
The former prime minister of France has suggested completely prohibiting children under the age of fifteen from using social media, with lockouts for older teenagers at night. It is genuinely unclear if governments are willing to follow through. Campaigns such as Zero Screens Zone operate in the space between policy and everyday life, reminding families that the issue is real, that they are not alone in their struggles, and that, for some families, going two hours without a phone in a mall can feel like an exhale they weren’t aware they were holding.
The same-titled documentary and podcast are currently accessible to the general public. It’s another matter entirely whether they get to the parents who most need them.
