Thirty-six hours screentime a week is the average for French teenagers. It is the equivalent of full-time employment. And adults who, on average, consult their smartphones every six minutes, are hardly setting a better example. In France, approximately 80% of children have at least one personal device.

In the post-pandemic world, society has been increasingly digital, and in every domain: healthcare, finance, politics, and even education. This has brought about a minor revolution in our habits, changing our relationships, sources of news and information, and of course consumer habits as digital tools have become a permanent part of our everyday routine.

To make things even worse, no effort is needed these days to explore the inner circles of the Internet inferno to find tales of horror. It takes just a couple of clicks to enter a virtual world where love and pornography are found side by side, as are news stories and conspiracy theories, justice and injustice, poets and influencers. As a constant driving force behind it all, there are any number of social media and platforms, and video and other on-line games. In France, the consequences on the younger generation have been reported, with effects on health, mental development and safety with threats of cyberbullying and risks of coming into contact with the wrong people. While computer technology, apps and screens can be used to educate, entertain, and distract children, what is the price that has to be paid?

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To conduct this report I went to different regions around France in a bid to understand the relationship that children have with screens in their everyday life. I met parents who are often at a loss when attempting to deal with the addictive behavior patterns of their children, not to mention the contradictory advice and policies proposed. Up against them are the Tech Giants with steady and massive investments in their pursuit of the 21st century holy grail which is to capture the attention of the generation of children today and therefore of the future generation of adults. This is David versus Goliath, where laws and courts of law are struggling to find responses for young victims. I also looked at healthcare professionals who are helping young people now deluded and disappointed by the promised land of the Internet. Their day-to-day work has included cases of revenge porn, with videos of oral sex involving girls as young as thirteen filmed in basements and car parks, scenes of self-mutilation, cases of paranoid delirium, and even attempted suicide by nine-year-old children. The exhibition is a visual portrayal of a generation of “indoor children” who, when they speak out, can often be heard and understood as a reflection of the problems of modern ultra-connected society.

Jérôme Gence

I wish to thank all the people I met in the course of the four years of reporting. Special thanks to Romain Lacroix, picture editor, Paris Match, and to all his team for the trust they showed; plus Éric Valli, Jean-François Gallois, Erwan Sourget and Émilie for their invaluable advice; and to Emmanuel Stock and the entire Canon team for their support ever since the first photos were taken in 2016.

The photos taken between January and August 2022 were produced as part of France's major national commission to photographers, “Viewing France During the Covid Crisis,” funded by the French Ministry of Culture, and conducted with the French National Library (BnF) as lead partner.

Jérôme Gence

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