Children and Childhood

• The ‘Attention Economy’ Is a Lie - It started in a laboratory. No one could have predicted where it would end.
• Kennedy Scales Back the Number of Vaccines Recommended for Children - Federal health officials now recommend that children be routinely inoculated against 11 diseases, not 17, citing standards in other wealthy nations.
• Hochul Will Back New Safeguards to Protect Children Online - In her State of the State address, Gov. Kathy Hochul will propose that the default setting for online platforms should ban viewing or messaging minors.
• Move Aside, Snowflake: ‘Theater Kid’ Is the New Go-To Political Insult - Zohran Mamdani, New York’s mayor-elect, is among the latest politicians to be tagged with the term, raising the question: What did theater kids do to deserve such scorn?
• R.F.K. Jr. Likely to Swap U.S. Childhood Vaccine Schedule for Denmark’s - The shift would mean fewer shots recommended for children. But a Danish health official found the idea baffling, saying the United States was getting “crazier and crazier in public health.”
• Australia Mourns the Youngest Victim of the Bondi Beach Shooting - Sydney’s devastated Jewish community gathered for the funeral of “Matilda Bee,” an ebullient, smiling 10-year-old girl.
• Birthrates Are Falling, but Don’t Blame Dogs in Strollers - New research suggests that having a pet can actually make people more likely to become parents.
• Why Trump Accounts, as Currently Planned, Risk Leaving Out Many Children - Michael and Susan Dell are donating $6.25 billion to American children via the accounts, but the details matter.
• Australia’s Social Media Ban for People Under 16 Takes Effect - The measure is one of the most sweeping efforts in the world to safeguard children from the harms of the platforms.
• Australia’s Social Media Ban for Under-16s Is Coming. The Teenagers Are Skeptical. - The country is trying to wean children under 16 off the likes of TikTok, Snapchat, YouTube and Instagram with a new law. The teenagers are skeptical.