This story is jointly published as part of the Utah College Media Collaborative, a cross-campus project bringing together emerging journalists from Salt Lake Community College, Southern Utah University, the University of Utah, Utah Tech University and Weber State University. The collaborative is an Amplify Utah project with support from PBS Utah and POV.
The five-part podcast series Ctrl + Z concludes with its hosts reflecting on their reporting about social media’s complex influence on Generation Z.
Throughout the reporting, a nuanced picture emerged: social media platforms offer genuine benefits while simultaneously presenting significant challenges for young users.
The first episodes explored often-overlooked positive aspects of social media. While most research focuses on disadvantages, studies also show these platforms can foster connection, self-esteem, and belonging. “World of Warcraft” players, for example, engage more in social interactions than communication about in-game objectives, with experienced players driving these meaningful exchanges.
Later episodes examined negative effects, including anxiety, fear of missing out and shrinking attention spans. A Southern Utah University professor noticed these impacts in the classroom, while many users acknowledge struggling to log off despite recognizing the harms. In response, Utah lawmakers passed laws in 2025 to regulate platforms, though these rules may have limitations in protecting young users.
The hosts conclude Ctrl + Z by inviting listeners to reflect on their own social media habits. Whether it’s gaming, news feeds, or endless scrolling — how intentional are you being with your screen time?
This story was reported and produced by communication students at Southern Utah University.
This story is jointly published as part of the Utah College Media Collaborative, a cross-campus project bringing together emerging journalists from Salt Lake Community College, Southern Utah University, the University of Utah, Utah Tech University and Weber State University. The collaborative is an Amplify Utah project with support from PBS Utah and POV.
You’ve probably noticed how social media has become an extension of your daily life, making it almost impossible to imagine existing without it.
For Ruth Jones, a Gen Z college student who recently transformed her online habits, social media had become overwhelming.
“TikTok was consuming my time and affecting my mood and relationships,” she said. Her solution was radical but effective — deleting TikTok completely and setting 30-minute timers on her remaining apps.
The results were transformative, Jones said.
“I’ve started crocheting. I’ve started doing art projects again,” she added.
Though Jones admits giving up TikTok was difficult — “like losing my firstborn child” — she said she now feels more present in her daily life and enjoys deeper, more fulfilling real-world connections.
Inspired by Jones’ experience, there are practical steps anyone can take to build a healthier social media relationship: curating a more positive feed, setting time limits, prioritizing in-person connections, and practicing digital wellness through periodic “digital detoxes.”
While social media certainly has its benefits, Jones found that taking control of how she engages with these platforms has helped her rediscover the richness of life beyond the screen.
Listen along as Jones shares her journey in moving away from excessive screen time.
Brynn Smith reported and produced this story as a communication student at Southern Utah University.
This story is jointly published as part of the Utah College Media Collaborative, a cross-campus project bringing together emerging journalists from Salt Lake Community College, Southern Utah University, the University of Utah, Utah Tech University and Weber State University. The collaborative is an Amplify Utah project with support from PBS Utah and POV. You’ve probably been told your entire life that there’s a lot of negatives to social media use. In the third episode of Ctrl + Z, host Gabriel Small explores some of these negative impacts on Generation Z.
Research shows that technology use has shortened our attention spans, and can also lead users to feel anxiety and FOMO (the fear of missing out.)
“I definitely think attention span has gone by the wayside,” says Dr. Matthew Barton, a professor at Southern Utah University. He sees students struggle to focus and read longer texts in his classes. Heather Turner, a communications student at SUU, describes feeling “a pit in my stomach” after scrolling through endless content and acknowledges that social media can be addictive.
Meanwhile, Utah lawmakers in the 2025 Legislative Session drafted regulations to hold social media companies accountable for addictive algorithms. The legislature passed two laws aimed at social platforms, including one requiring app stores to verify users’ ages.
In the next episode, Brynn Smith will explore how some Gen Z social media users have formed a healthier relationship with technology.
Gabriel Small reported and produced this story as a communication student at Southern Utah University.
This story is jointly published as part of the Utah College Media Collaborative, a cross-campus project bringing together emerging journalists from Salt Lake Community College, Southern Utah University, the University of Utah, Utah Tech University and Weber State University. The collaborative is an Amplify Utah project with support from PBS Utah and POV.
You’ve probably been told your entire life about the many downsides of social media. In this exploration, we looked at the often-overlooked positive aspects of these digital platforms.
According to the American Public University, “[social] media sites provide opportunities for individuals to connect with friends, family, and like-minded individuals, even across geographical distances. These connections help maintain relationships and interests, fostering a sense of belonging, self-esteem and support in users.”
Yet research frequently focuses primarily on the negatives. Dr. Mesfin Bekalu, a researcher at Harvard University who conducted a study on social media in 2020, found that “most studies focus on measuring frequency and duration of use.”
Harvard’s website reports these studies “seldom [consider] users’ emotional connections to social media use and the effects associated with such connections,” typically treating social media “dosage” similarly to television, which ignores what Dr. Bekalu called “the unique features of social media, such as interactivity, ‘always-on,’ and networked-ness.”
We can see these traits at work in games like World of Warcraft, where users communicate through in-game text chat while completing fantasy quests. In 2006, Cornell University researchers studying these messages found players posted significantly more socioemotional messages than task-oriented ones, essentially using the game as a social media platform.
“Social media can also act as a sort of online forum,” said Isabela de las Costas, a senior at Southern Utah University and advocate for minority clubs on campus.
She noted these platforms allow users to spread and critique ideas in real time, though she cautions that without proper care, users may “just spiral” rather than seeing positive change.
While social media certainly has its downsides, Dr. Bekalu suggested we shouldn’t discount its positive aspects – those that allow us to connect with others, explore new ideas, and most importantly, have fun.
Nathaniel Buck reported and produced this story as a communication student at Southern Utah University.
This story is jointly published as part of the Utah College Media Collaborative, a cross-campus project bringing together emerging journalists from Salt Lake Community College, Southern Utah University, the University of Utah, Utah Tech University and Weber State University. The collaborative is an Amplify Utah project with support from PBS Utah and POV.
You’ve probably been holding the internet in the palm of your hand since you were a baby, the first generation in human history to do so. Yet your parents likely remember a time before TikTok and Instagram, even before 4chan and MySpace.
The internet’s evolution has been rapid and transformative. Beginning with ARPANET in 1969, university researchers created a proto-internet for electronic communication. This evolved into chat rooms and email, revolutionizing how people connected across distances.
The early 2000s saw an explosion of platforms like Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter, all designed to connect users in innovative ways. But in the timeless words of Spider-Man’s Uncle Ben, “with great power comes great responsibility.”
In this five-part podcast series, CTRL+Z, Southern Utah University students explore the complex relationship between Generation Z and social media. Each episode examines a different aspect of this digital experience.
In episode 2, Nathaniel Buck investigates how social media positively affects users’ lives through research and interviews with SUU students about connection and authentic self-expression online.
In episode 3, Gabriel Small delves into the negative impacts commonly associated with excessive social media use, featuring perspectives from both students and professionals.
In episode 4, Brynn Smith explores how Gen Z can build healthier relationships with technology, offering practical tips for digital balance.
CLT+Z concludes in episode 5 with the team discussing how to apply these insights to their own digital lives.
The series aims to provide a comprehensive look at how the first truly digital generation navigates the online world they’ve inherited—for better and worse.
This story was reported and produced by communication students at Southern Utah University.
This story is jointly published as part of the Utah College Media Collaborative, a cross-campus project bringing together emerging journalists from Salt Lake Community College, Southern Utah University, the University of Utah, Utah Tech University and Weber State University. The collaborative is an Amplify Utah project with support from PBS Utah and POV.
Before discovering Instagram filters, Lauren Bohanan said she never worried about how she looked online.
“I didn’t even know Instagram had filters until my friends at the time always told me to use them,” said the Utah native and bioengineering major at the University of Colorado Boulder. “It bred a lot of insecurity that I never had before.”
Those insecurities, she added, eventually contributed to body dysmorphia and influenced her decision to get lip fillers.
Bohanan’s experience reflects the broader impact of Augmented Reality, or AR, beauty filters on college students’ self-perception. While Meta removed third-party AR and beauty filters from its apps on Jan. 14, these digital alterations have already become fixtures on most social media platforms, increasing pressure on young adults to conform to unrealistic beauty standards.
Before 2015, Instagram offered only its original filters such as X-Pro II, Earlybird and Apollo, which allowed users to capture the essence of vintage worn-out Polaroids or achieve a “Tumblr-esque” aesthetic; a hipster lifestyle striving for uniqueness and individuality which later became a niche in of itself. However, many of these nostalgic tools have been eclipsed by the rise of AR filters – digital overlays that augment the real world seen through a smartphone camera and add other elements to the images.
AR filters have rapidly developed since their arrival on social media. Beauty filters can contort facial features and body appearance, smooth skin texture, fix discoloration and enhance various facial features. A study published last October suggests beautifying filters can make young women feel more dissatisfied with their bodies.
University of Utah junior, Karen San Juan explains how AR filters can lead to heavy comparison of physical beauty.
“These filters can be a mask, helping people cover their insecurities but creating a false reality. Especially with evolving technology, it is harder to tell if someone has a beauty filter on, some viewers may be led to believe that the filter is one’s natural beauty,” San Juan said.
Grant Beck, a sophomore computer science major at the University of Utah, said beauty filters can mask insecurities but also create a false reality.
“It is harder to tell if someone has a beauty filter on and some viewers may be led to believe that it is their natural beauty,” Beck added.
As social media has expanded as an industry, allowing additions of AR filters that enhance beauty in many different ways, so has changed the definition of beauty. Specifically that of body image is something that has been heavily touched through the posts of influencers on different social media platforms. Not only does this portrayal of ‘perfect’ bodies impact depression or anxiety but can also influence physical health through eating disorders.
“The media has expectations on what the beauty standard is, and if you don’t fit into it, then you’re ‘not good enough,’ which can lead to many people feeling insecure about their physical appearance.”
Snapchat first popularized AR filters in 2015, with other apps like Instagram and TikTok quickly following suit.
Professor Avery Holton, who serves as communication department chair at the U, said most filters began as stickers or sparkles before evolving into tools for people to modify their appearance.
“[Filters] match an aesthetic that we feel like we should be achieving to fit in or to meet standards,” he said.
Holton added people can use filters for fun but they become “more problematic when it’s done to influence or guide the communities we are in” and change our perception of ourselves and who we should be.
Holton said these filters often target Gen Z, specifically young women, adding that women between 15 and 24 use social media the most and average about seven to eight hours a day.
Role of Algorithms
As young women spend hours scrolling through social media, they often encounter targeted images such as trends, aesthetics and lifestyle content. By interacting with these images, their preferences can feed into an algorithm that influences how they should act, look and behave.
Isabelle Freiling, assistant professor of communication at the University of Utah, said social media platforms use sophisticated algorithms that can precisely identify user preferences and interests.
“They show us information that we engage with that keeps us on those platforms,” she said. “Sometimes you might be like, ‘I don’t want to spend much time scrolling on Instagram’ but you’re still going there and scrolling. It’s not easy to resist, it’s so hard to turn away from it all.”
Karen San Juan, a health and kinesiology major at the University of Utah, said she believes presenting idealized images on social media can lead to harmful comparisons, depression and anxiety.
“There tends to be this idea of ‘perfection’ and only sharing the good moments with everyone,” she said. “From an outside perspective, you may think someone is having the time of their life, you may start comparing your life to theirs and question why yours isn’t as great.”
Younger women tend to see this more often in social media influencers, who they idolize for their beauty, lifestyle and aesthetics. Beauty filters give many young women the chance to replicate the look of these influencers to try to achieve the same aesthetic or lifestyle that has gained them fame or recognition.
Beck believes younger generations’ need for approval makes them vulnerable to filters on social media. Based on observations Beck has made from experiences with female relatives and friends, he said he understands the sense of pressure surrounding societal ideals of beauty and perfection.
“Women in particular might be affected because society already holds them to a high standard of physical appearance.”
Bohanan, however, expressed skepticism about whether removing AR filters will improve students’ mental health.
“The damage is done in the sense there are still editing apps such as Facetune and now AI,” she said. “I’ve seen so many ads on TikTok and reels for body and face-altering programs that receive high downloads. The age of social media will always find a way to target insecurities as that’s how there is control and profit.”
Addy Christensen and Eliza Delgado reported and produced this story as English and Psychology students at the University of Utah.
This story is jointly published as part of the Utah College Media Collaborative, a cross-campus project bringing together emerging journalists from Salt Lake Community College, Southern Utah University, the University of Utah, Utah Tech University and Weber State University. The collaborative is an Amplify Utah project with support from PBS Utah and POV.
Behind the scenes of popular video games like Valorant and League of Legends, Jeniel Zimmerman ensures viewers see every shot and stunt as an esports replay operator. Graduating from the University of Utah, they worked tirelessly in the games program organizing events and being the head coach of the Valorant team to work in the industry that they love.
But since joining the industry in February 2020, Zimmerman said they have also witnessed gaming’s darker side. After hearing Zimmerman’s voice during a match, they said, one male player abruptly declared, “I’m not playing with stupid bitches.”
Women make up nearly half of the world’s gaming audience yet remain underrepresented in competitive gaming spaces. Zimmerman’s experience isn’t isolated, especially when working with Radiant, a women-led company organizing tournaments for marginalized genders like the Rainbow Six Blitzqueen competition.
“I’ve definitely known people who have experienced all sorts of mistreatment because of their gender,” they said. “I know that it does happen, so even though I feel very lucky, I don’t want to minimize those things that have happened.”
Zimmerman’s experience is not uncommon and reflects recent events in gaming, they said.
Jeniel Zimmerman works as an esports replay operator and says she has seen and experienced the mistreatment of women. Photo courtesy Jeniel Zimmerman.
Blizzard faces allegations of denying promotion opportunities and paying women less than men for doing substantially similar work, while Riot Games also had a similar settlement around 2018 for the same practices towards their female employees, according to California’s Civil Rights Department.
Gaming has grown tremendously over the past few years. It’s a genuine business with billions of dollars passing through the hands of consumers and viewers alike. Women have always been a part of that growing audience, with notable female players like VKLiooon and content creators like Pokimane contributing to gaming culture. Players like Eskay, a notable Valorant and Overwatch player and Umisho, a fighting game champion in 2022 are winning in big tournaments and drawing in large audiences.
Even as women continue to play the number of female players has always been lower than male players, studies show. The 2024 report done by the ESA showed that 2024 had a 53%/46% male/female split. According to a 2024 report by Mackenzie Management Review, women in esports are often made to feel inferior to male gamers, asked invasive questions about their personal lives and are regularly approached and sometimes harassed by male players seeking an intimate relationship.
The study also found that women gamers frequently face inappropriate treatment. One participant described being accused of paying for her high rank in a game simply because others refused to believe a woman could achieve such skill legitimately.
An event that stuck with one of the participants was an accusation that they were a elojob [a player who pays for a better rank] because of the insinuation that women can play well.
Not all experiences are negative, however. Fernanda Pinaffi, a Brazilian international student majoring in film at the University of Utah, said she found acceptance within the campus esports production team.
“So, there are always people who are going to enjoy [you], who are going to appreciate you,” she said. “I was very lucky that the esports scene here at the University of Utah was so welcoming to me.”
But stories like Pinaffi’s can be few and far between. According to a study done by Jural Syntax Dmiration, one reason female players avoid using voice communication is due to fear of harassment, perpetuating gender stereotypes and further marginalizing women within the gaming community.
Heather Garozo, the president of Radiant Gaming and former professional gamer, said she faced persistent skepticism about her abilities before becoming CEO.
“At my peak as a player, my brother was also considered like the top in-game leader in the world at the time,” she said. “Any time I had success online there was a lot of like,’ oh that’s her brother playing.’ I felt completely discredited. And, so, I had to work [harder] … I had to do more to prove myself.”
For Lucy Hernandez, a transgender student at the U working in esports productions, inappropriate behavior often goes unchecked in smaller competitive settings.
“There’s no HR or nothing for these small tournaments, so it’s very easy to develop an exclusionary mindset,” Hernadez said. “All you can do is just try your best to ignore it.”
Hernadez added she tries to take pride in her identity as a woman as well as being transgender.
“What I am, who I am, and regardless of if that gives me opportunities or not,” she said, “it matters … that I stay true to myself and I don’t compromise who I am to move forward.”
Jonnathan Yi reported and produced this story as communication student at University of Utah.
This story is jointly published as part of the Utah College Media Collaborative, a cross-campus project bringing together emerging journalists from Salt Lake Community College, Southern Utah University, the University of Utah, Utah Tech University and Weber State University. The collaborative is an Amplify Utah project with support from PBS Utah and POV.
As a closeted high schooler growing up in rural Utah, Colton Bell found seeking connection online and embracing his love for gaming was the only way he could find a sense of belonging while growing up in a community that wouldn’t accept him.
“I had online friendships from the jump because growing up as a gay kid in a small town in Utah was very difficult,” said Bell, a Weber State University alumnus and self-proclaimed gamer. “At the end of the day, I couldn’t share, even with my closest friends in high school, that information about myself.”
Bell explained how gaming allowed him to connect with other members of the LGBTQ+ community, bringing him a sense of belonging.
“Having online friends that were just online friends, that I’d potentially never meet, meant that all of a sudden I could be my authentic self with someone in a way I couldn’t be in person,” Bell said. “The difference that made permanently altered my life and permanently alters the lives of other people every day because it helps you grow more comfortable in your skin.”
In situations like Bell’s, finding a sense of belonging can prove to be challenging. For many, video games and online communities offer a sense of reprieve.
“I think that people who are anti-gaming don’t understand that people have found connections with people they would’ve never met otherwise and met people who have positively changed their lives or shown them new things,” Bell said.
In 2014, Bell made WSU history as the first pledge to a brand-new fraternity called Psi Phi Psi. According to Zachary Kirst, Psi Phi Psi’s current president, video games and popular media have historically served as a common ground for the fraternity’s brethren.
Kirst frequents Discord servers centered around the video game Dark Deception in his free time and says the social dynamics found in online communities mirror those of the fraternity he leads.
“The media itself is the foundation for how people get to know each other,” Kirst said.“But, that grows into something bigger over time as people keep talking with each other over and over again.”
Weber State University student Zachary Kirst talking about the intersection between gaming and healthy social habits.
Although Kirst explained that while he values forming social bonds in person, he is grateful for the connections that he’s been able to make online, adding that he’s been able to connect with people around the world.
“I still find a lot of value in my online relationships because it doesn’t matter that they are behind a screen,” Kirst said. “They are still human beings that want to connect with you.”
However, both Kirst and Bell agreed that there is risk involved when young people strictly engage in social activities through an online medium.
“Some people who are 100% into thinking that’s the only way to communicate often fall into a hole of not being able to socialize outside those groups,” Bell said. “People can really get stuck sometimes.”
Can Gaming Pose a Risk to Mental Health?
As gaming grows in popularity among young people, studies have investigated the tie between excessive time playing video games and mental health issues such as depression, anxiety and stress, with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) identifying gaming as a potential candidate for addiction.
The DSM’s 2022 edition states that Internet Gaming Disorder must cause “significant impairment or distress” in other areas of a person’s life. Proposed symptoms revolve around a person’s dependence on video games or inability to stop gaming when it threatens their daily responsibilities.
Aminda O’Hare, an assistant professor of psychology and neuroscience at Weber State University, explained that video games can be particularly addictive because they create a reward system where the participant doesn’t know when the next rush will come and has to keep playing.
“What video games play into is a reinforcement schedule where you’re anticipating a reward, but you don’t know exactly when it’s going to happen,” said O’Hare. “We’ve learned from animal models that when that’s the reward schedule, it leads to the most repetitive behaviors.”
O’Hare also acknowledged gaming as a potential solution to another health issue: loneliness.
O’Hare cited findings from the Harvard Study of Adult Development, a longitudinal study that has tracked the habits of over 700 participants and their descendants since 1938 to determine what factors lead to a long, happy life. According to the study, one of the best predictors of a long life is the quality of a person’s relationships.
“If some individuals struggle with in-person relationships or they’re just in an environment where the people around them aren’t providing the support they need, then an online social group can certainly fill that void for people,” O’Hare said.
Since Internet Gaming Disorder needs further study, research has yet to pin down its exact prevalence among gamers. What current research has found is a link between gaming and social interaction, though it’s not clear whether it is negative, positive or both.
For some, like feminist media critic and content creator Anita Sarkeesian, interactions with online gaming communities have yielded threats of violence and displays of hatred.
After creating a campaign in 2012 that sought to investigate the use of harmful female stereotypes in video games, Sarkeesian was met with an unrelenting campaign of hatred and misogyny.
Sarkeesian, the author of an online video series called “Feminist Frequency,” canceled a talk at Utah State University in 2014 after university staff received an email containing credible threats of violence against her and those attending the event.
On the other hand, WSU’s campus recreation department has begun using video games to encourage positive social interaction. Starting in fall 2024, the university has hosted a Mario Kart tournament for students to participate in as part of the school’s intramural sports program.
Competitive Sports Coordinator Lexi Morrissey said that she wants to get students from all walks of life involved with campus recreation.
“Involvement in any organization on campus increases people’s willingness to stick around; it strengthens their sense of community,” Morrissey said. “I want people to feel welcome within campus intramural sports even if they don’t play something you would consider a traditional sport.”
Morrissey said she plans to continue using video games when organizing intramural sports events at WSU.
“If someone shows up to one of my events and makes a friend, that’s a success,” Morrissey said.
So, when does gaming become a threat to a young person’s mental health? Some studies have tried to find a link between the time spent gaming among adolescents and worse mental health outcomes.
A 2022 study conducted in China surveyed 1,603 primary and secondary school students and found that the children spent an average of 41.4 minutes weekly gaming and that each additional hour spent playing video games increased the risk of experiencing anxiety, depression or stress with moderate or worse symptoms.
However, another study in 2022 surveyed 38,935 gamers globally and concluded that more time spent playing video games was unlikely to lead to negative well-being outcomes.
According to the current literature, reviews are mixed on whether or not gaming can be directly correlated with negative mental health outcomes.
Trading Cards and Community
The intersection between gaming and social interaction can be seen in the world of trading card games, where players gather to compete, mingle and get better at their games of choice.
Connor Albury, a WSU alum, helps organize a local trading card game tournament at Hill Top TCG in Riverdale, Utah for the game Lorcana, which features fast gameplay and cards themed with Disney artwork depicting fan-favorite characters. Albury says that the community has always been welcoming of newcomers.
“Pop into any local league and there’s almost always going to be people there willing to help you learn and develop,” Albury said.
Albury, who has been playing Lorcana competitively shortly after its inception in 2023, says that one of his favorite aspects of the game is the volume of new players.
Stephen Salmon, an instructor of public speaking and communication law at WSU, can also be found on Wednesday nights playing Lorcana in Hill Top TCG’s local league.
“This group and a lot of the groups we play with are a close-knit community,” said Salmon. “We’ve become friends.”
A PEW Research study in 2024 indicated that 72% of teens who played video games did so to spend time with others, while 47% said that they’ve made friends online through playing video games.
Both Albury and Salmon agree that they use their time gaming as a temporary escape from reality and to relieve the stress of everyday life. Playing these games in a social setting has made the experience more enjoyable for them and has created unique opportunities like the chance to compete in national and international tournaments.
Those who choose to embrace the hobby in a positive and healthy way see gaming as a tool to fortify their mental wellness rather than something that stands to ruin it.
“Are there people who go too far? Absolutely,” Salmon said. “But at the end of the day, it’s important to find something you like doing and to be healthy about it. Everything in moderation.”
As an educator, Salmon said red flags that a student is experiencing possible mental health issues related to gaming include repeatedly being absent from class and not turning in assignments.
“It’s really hard to tell they’re experiencing problems unless you’re in their personal life,” Salmon said. “If they’re consistently not leaving their room, not showering for days, or not eating, as family members or friends, that’s where we should be stepping up.”
Opportunities and Staying Involved
While gaming can give people a sense of community and belonging, gaming can also provide new, unique opportunities.
Bell was able to work for the video game company Activision-Blizzard during his time at WSU managing the company’s outreach efforts to college campuses. He also helped found WSU’s esports club, which has evolved into an intramural sports team.
“Gaming started as this little hobby that I had barely any access to,” Bell said. “But, it then allowed me to work for one of the biggest video game companies in the world.”
Through his involvement in gaming, Kirst found community among the Psi Phi Psi’s brethren and an opportunity to try his hand at voice acting in Dark Deception fan projects.
“I thought it would be funny if I gave it a try, but I actually ended up doing well and thriving off that experience,” Kirst said. “Although I don’t know if I’m going to continue voice acting heavily, I feel like I’ve gained a new interest and unlocked a new part of myself.”
By involving himself in the Lorcana competitive scene, Albury has been able to travel across the country to attend Disney Lorcana Challenges — regional tournaments of 2,000 players where they compete for the chance to play at the game’s national championships.
Albury, who has placed as high as the top 128 and top 300 in 2,000-player competitions, said that being involved in Discord servers adjacent to the game led to him being scouted for a regional team.
“Lorcana has only changed my life for the better, I can’t count on my hands and my toes how many new friends I’ve been able to make because of Lorcana,” Albury said, adding that he’s been featured alongside content creators on their podcasts and has even been able to meet the creators of the game during a tournament.
Those interviewed agree that gaming not only helps people form relationships and create communities but also presents new opportunities to be explored.
Onlookers and non-gamers may not see it that way when they see a loved one spend multiple hours daily gaming. Kirst and Bell both agreed that the best strategy for checking in on loved ones who are gamers is to simply ask questions and stay involved in their lives.
“The biggest step we can take is to just talk to people about why they spend so much time playing video games,” Kirst said, explaining that people may react to others spending a lot of time playing video games and begin to fear the worst.
“One kid playing six hours of video games might be a bad thing,” Bell said. “It might be hurting them for any number of reasons — but, for another kid, those six hours might be really important.”
Bell said a former coworker from Activision Blizzard worried about her two young sons who were constantly confining themselves to their attic to play StarCraft II during odd hours of the night. The coworker initially believed that the gaming habits of her sons would negatively impact their lives.
“They sat her down one day and explained that they are playing with some of the top players in the world and they live in South Korea, so that was the only time that they could play,” Bell said, explaining that the sons pleaded with their mother to let them show her that their hobby wasn’t consuming their lives and was, in actuality, an important part of their lives. “They both went on to become world champions.”
Bell, the LGBTQ+ gamer from Southern Utah, can identify with the importance of gaming. He said it felt liberating to explore his LGBTQ+ identity with people similar to himself online because he didn’t feel free to do so in his everyday life.
“Referencing myself, not being able to speak with people and explore my identity and being ripped away from that might’ve made me incredibly depressed or caused mental health issues because I would’ve felt like I was stuck in a world that I couldn’t get out of,” Bell said.
Sky Mundellreported and wrote this story as a communication student at Weber State University.
This story is jointly published as part of the Utah College Media Collaborative, a cross-campus project bringing together emerging journalists from Salt Lake Community College, Southern Utah University, the University of Utah, Utah Tech University and Weber State University. The collaborative is an Amplify Utah project with support from PBS Utah.
Generation Z, born between 1997 and 2012, entered the workforce and reshaped the way people communicate in a professional setting. Phrases like, “facts” and “slay” are being used in meetings, leaving managers and other workers searching through Urban Dictionary for answers.
From baby boomers, born between 1946 and 1964, to Gen Z, each has their own way of speaking, which can make conversations more confusing than productive. Each has their own slang, due to their different experiences. Baby boomers had “threads” and “groovy,” which could be foreign words to Gen Z. On the flipside, Gen Z has phrases like, “Ok boomer” and “bussin” which depending on context could be taken negatively by someone in the boomer generation.
Jeshua Enriquez, a millennial and an assistant English professor at Salt Lake Community College, communicates with Gen Z students daily in his classes.
“Gen Zers tend to use more compassionate and open-minded language when interacting with others, and many of them go out of their way to show kindness and avoid sounding entitled to others,” Enriquez said. “In many cases. they seem more shy to share opinions or judgments than other generations.”
Enriquez said he recently asked one of his classes how they feel they speak differently and how they communicate with different generations. During a free-write exercise, he said, students described their generation as taking a more casual approach to language, often using slang that confuses older generations. One student noted that Gen Z communication frequently incorporates references or quotes from TikTok and television shows, almost like linguistic sponges absorbing and repurposing content from various media sources.
Jeremy Hendrickson, a baby boomer and trainer with Teleperformance, said he does his best to understand the new hires he works with at the Salt Lake-area call center.
“We hire a lot of younger folks to help relate to the customer[s],” Hendrickson said. “But I am going to be honest, I don’t understand a word they are saying. I feel as if I need Google Translate to help me out.”
But, Hendrickson said, the generational language barrier doesn’t seem to hurt their retention of information.
“I mean, they pass the tests to get on the phone,” he said.
Baby boomers contributed significantly to the American vernacular, introducing many terms that remain in use today. The linguistic impact, according to language-learning platform Babbel, extends beyond slang.
“Part of the reason it’s so hard to measure the impacts of baby boomers on language is that, at this point, we’re all living in the world they created,” Thomas Moore Devlin, Babbel’s editorial lead, wrote in a 2022 article. “While millennials and boomers are measured by how far they deviate from the linguistic norm, boomers have created the norm, and continue to shape it.”
CheyAnn Lee, 26 and a member of Gen Z, works with a lot of members of different generations at her job at Pride Transportation.
“[Coworkers] come in trying to talk like their grandkids, but they have no idea what they are saying, and all I can do is laugh,” she said.
Other times, she said, they use words that seem to come from their own youth.
“They use some words that I don’t know what they mean. I usually leave meetings confused and have go to the internet to find the meaning,” Lee added.
Forbes reported that research offers mixed messages on whether generational differences impact workplace operations, but a May 2020 study from a researcher at Wichita State University found that Gen Zs prefer to communicate with their managers in face-to-face settings.
“To engage with employees of all ages, management must understand their communication styles and preferences,” Merry Beth Hall wrote in a June 2018 report exploring how a shift in hiring mindsets will be crucial in recruiting for a younger workforce.
To communicate more effectively with Gen Z in the workplace, Forbes suggest six tips, ranging from focusing on output to prioritizing transparency and using channels they’re comfortable with to recognizing what’s important to them.
“By simply substituting more Generation Z-friendly language,” Hall added in her report, “employers may find that they can attract the best and brightest of the younger generation.”
As workplaces continue to bring generations together, the language barrier persists in ways both challenging and humorous. Whether it’s Lee leaving meetings to search the internet for meaning, or Hendrickson feeling like he needs Google Translate for his younger colleagues, these communication gaps have become a daily reality.
Shyanne Beecher reported and wrote this story as a journalism student at Salt Lake Community College.
This story is jointly published as part of the Utah College Media Collaborative, a cross-campus project bringing together emerging journalists from Salt Lake Community College, Southern Utah University, the University of Utah, Utah Tech University and Weber State University. The collaborative is an Amplify Utah project with support from PBS Utah and POV.
As gaming worlds grow larger, more detailed, and increasingly intense, the debate persists about the influence of video games on mental health and whether they can “rot” the brain.
It all started with a single flicker: pixelated shapes, aligning blocks, stacking sets, and scoring points. The thrill was in the simplicity, controlling over dancing pixels on a TV screen.
Then came the era of adventure, where the journey through a mushroom kingdom captivated a generation.
These early games weren’t deep or long, but they hooked players in a way that forever changed and set a new norm of social culture.
Fast forward to today, and the stakes are even higher. It’s no longer clearing lines or jumping over obstacles. Now, players are controlling super soldiers in an intergalactic war, competing in front of thousands of fans inside a sold-out arena.
This question has echoed through generations, from the old-school arcade days to the rise of online multiplayer communities, the explosive growth of streaming platforms and the impact of esports.
When slang becomes social commentary
In 2024, the Oxford University Press named “brain rot” as its word of the year, making it the second year in a row that a Gen Z/Alpha-influenced term has shaped the course of where communication is heading.
The term has grown beyond meme references, becoming a target of criticism of modern digital media consumption.
“I can see why people think gaming is brain rot, you can definitely take it that far. But the term is kind of overused,” said Spencer Tracy, student and captain of the Halo Esports team.“It’s more about overexposure to [the] media in general. That’s not just video games — that’s social media, movies, and the millions of ads we see every day. You can get brain rot from anything if you overconsume it.”
Ironically, Gen Z and Gen Alpha — the same groups creating and consuming digital content — have also embraced the term “brain rot” on social media, one of the various platforms accused of causing it.
“It demonstrates a somewhat cheeky self-awareness in the younger generations about the harmful impact of social media that they’ve inherited” stated Casper Grathwohl, president of Oxford Languages.
Gaming has long faced criticism for its impact on players. Parents, educators and psychologists have debated its influence for decades, questioning whether it inspires creativity and strategic thinking or fuels addiction and social withdrawal.
The rise of platforms like Twitch, Facebook Gaming, and Kick has only increased discussion as thousands of players spend hours on streaming instead of engaging in real-world activities.
While some view gaming as a contributor to so-called “brain rot,” others see video games as tools for learning, skill development, social bonding and even professional opportunities.
With gaming reaching more than $100 billion in revenue in 2023 and esports becoming a legitimate competitive platform, students and faculty express how gaming provides them with entertainment, community building and personal growth. To these gamers, games have far surpassed the meaning of “just playing games”; they have become a cultural bridge to a new era of communication.
SLCC Esports: A case for gaming, community and identity
Coach Jeff Sosa, director of SLCC’s Esports program, highlights how gaming is misunderstood by many, particularly older generations.
“I think a lot of older generations think of gaming as ‘brain rot’ because they don’t understand how gaming activates or excites people,” Sosa said.
“Much like how not everyone likes all sports, and not every sport has everyone’s interest, but older generations don’t struggle with its appeal because you can physically see the action,” he said. “However, there isn’t much physical action in video games.”
Sosa acknowledged some games are simply made to be addictive and could be considered a “brain rot” style of game. He also said some people just use video games as their form of brain rot to pass the time.
“It’s a fine line because the activity [gaming] can do both, unlike some forms of physical sports.”
However, Sosa believes esports can shift the narrative by providing a competitive outlet that challenges players in ways that many may not expect.
“College esports helps show that there is a serious side to gaming, and if you think someone is good at gaming, they can prove it. You’d be surprised how many students think they are good at gaming but refuse to actually play an esports game that their program supports,” Sosa said.
According to Sosa, SLCC’s Esports not only offers a platform for competition but also an opportunity for gamers to prove their skills while challenging the “brain rot” stereotype and fostering a sense of community and pride.
For SLCC gaming students, the esports program stands as a testament to gaming’s ability to create meaningful connections and even shape personal identities through an ever-changing college environment.
For Tracy, gaming, and being a part of the Halo team, is more than a competition, it’s about community.
“I love gaming, I love Halo, and I love building teams and bringing people together. When a local tournament can bring hundreds of people together from all over the world to just play Halo, that’s a pretty special thing.”
Former and current SLCC esports players echo the feeling. Luis Vilchez, a former member of the Halo team, sees gaming as a natural extension and contributor to his competitive drive.
“It has improved my communication and chemistry with my teammates drastically on and offline,” Vilchez said.
Isabelle “Fluffy” Saunders, current member of SLCC Overwatch team, found a deeper connection through gaming.
“Most of my friends and the people I meet have been through esports,” Saunders said. “I definitely [have] grown a lot as [a] person playing video games because a big part of competition is communication. I’ve always struggled with communicating. I feel like learning how to act in a virtual environment really helped me understand that a lot better, it just made me more comfortable because I got more confident in talking in real life.”
Students and the ‘brain rot’ stigma
Outside of esports, two SLCC students and casual gamers also challenge the idea that video games contribute to brain rot.
Ayad Al Samaray, a 19-year-old computer science major, sees a distinction between gaming and the mindless content consumption known as “doom scrolling.”
“Brain rot to me, is short-form media found on platforms like TikTok, and is something that is low effort with a negative impact on your mind … I would definitely not categorize most video games as brain rot,” Al Samaray said.
“The furthest I’d go is to say that some of the communities overlap, but video games at the source are not brain rot,” he said.
Ryan Castrita-Morales, a 19-year-old majoring in health science, acknowledges gaming has the potential to become something that consumes one’s time, but believes it’s about personal responsibility.
“I don’t think all games are brain rot, but it’s easy to turn off your brain and waste time on them,” Castrita-Morales said. “Gaming is a way to connect with people from around the world and insert yourself into the story of a video game. I think it’s great entertainment and enrichment, but it’s up to you to manage your time to avoid it from becoming an addiction.”
Gerardo Galvez-Zamora reported and wrote this story as a communication student at Salt Lake Community College.
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