Going offline is fun. Living offline was not – just ask a child of the 90s | Emma Beddington
The neo-luddites are fighting the good fight. But my life before smartphones felt lonelier and more dangerous
Welcome to the Summer of Ludd. That’s the name of an anti-smartphone festival recently held in New York. It was slightly under the radar for obvious reasons – there was no Instagram, TikTok or website; advertisements were on “wheatpasted monochrome posters”. Those attending followed the rules: “Be present, and absolutely no phones, recording, or photos allowed.”
That’s perhaps why, the Economist reported, “crowds were small” – but they seemed to be having fun, with events including “Google in Real Life” (festival attenders answering questions on their specialist subjects), “flirting rehabilitation” and “hanging out with rats”. I was particularly charmed by the festival’s “media spokespuppet”, Gowanus: more events should be fronted by carpet offcuts with sock arms and button eyes.
To read the full story from the source: The Guardian – International
