Reclaiming Our Digital Lives w/ Lou Millar-McHugh

In this episode, I chat with UX designer, leftist technologist, and creator of Irrational Technology, Lou Millar-McHugh, about the sort of questions we really need to be asking about our relationship to social media.

We also talk about: why understanding is more important than control, how social media literacy could improve leftist comms strategies, the problem with screen time apps and gamification, ADHD tech beyond productivity, and why Jonathan Haidt sucks so much!!

LINKS:

* Irrational Technology: Substack, TikTok, Youtube

* A Leftist Guide To Staying Off Your Phone (Notion)

* Social Media Strategy Template for Social Change Orgs (Notion)

* Pre-print showing screen time apps don’t work: Skeggs and Orben, Social Media Interventions to Improve Wellbeing

* Beyond the Essay: New Ways of Critical Reflection, a project exploring how to create digital spaces that lead readers toward critical reflection

* my discussion thread on ADHD technology (add your 2 cents!)

* the video essay I made on Digital Madness

* some of Lou’s excellent book recommendations for further reading!!!!

* transcript

00:00 Intro

01:22 Lou's Background and Educational Project

02:25 The Concept of Irrational Technology

04:14 Persuasive Design

06:03 Critique of Addiction Metaphors and The Anxious Generation

10:48 A Leftist Critique of Technology

12:54 User Autonomy and Social Media

15:11 How to Develop Effective Leftist Media Strategies

22:33 A Leftist Guide to Staying Off Your Phone

27:19 How Personalization in UX Design Creates an Illusion of Control

28:34 Why Screen Time Apps Don’t Work

29:44 The Problem with Gamification

32:37 ADHD Technology and the Benefits of Simplicity

37:22 Lou’s Content Creation Process

40:59 The Platforms Lou Will Be Using in 2025

47:37 Where to Find Lou’s Work