Philip Boucher Hayes

speaker

3,375 appearances 85 recordings 1 series first heard Jul 2026 last heard 6 Aug

Philip Boucher Hayes’s voice in public audio — every appearance, attributed to the second.

Trend

recordings per month · last 12 months

Recordings per month over the last 12 months — 85 in all, peaking in Jul 2026 with 58.

Appearances

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Today with David McCullagh · Earlier social media use associated with lower test scores in kids · 4 Aug 2026 podcast

This study is about educational attainment and performance and the impact of social media on it. voice-verified

And as you say, nothing is proven. voice-verified

It just points towards the possible downsides of distraction. voice-verified

That's as distinct from mental health and the impacts that social media has there. voice-verified

What observations would you make or distinctions would you make between the two? voice-verified

Limited impact on educational attainment, no impact on well-being. voice-verified

Owen, is there an element of adult moral panic around social media apps? voice-verified

Before that, it was radio. voice-verified

We had Children's Minister Norma Foley in on the programme on Friday. voice-verified

And in her efforts, she was definitely leaning much more in the direction of placing the onus, the burden for responsible usage on users themselves. voice-verified

And when I suggested to her that what needed to be modified here was the algorithms that were pushing certain undesirable content in front of those young eyeballs, she didn't deny that that was a problem, but she seemed a lot less enthusiastic, if I can sum her up that way, for imposing restraint or regulation on the tech companies. voice-verified

Is she getting the balance of responsibility right here, do you think? voice-verified

Yeah. voice-verified

We've all heard the stories and read the studies about those schools that have instituted a ban and how kids end up playing cards during their lunchtime. voice-verified

There's a much higher level of social interaction that we as adults would be used to. voice-verified

And that is all very desirable. voice-verified

I wonder, though, would you care to speculate on what would happen in a world where you were able to implement a social media ban to under 16s and then suddenly wallop on their 17th birthday? voice-verified

They're exposed to this world and it washes over them like a tsunami. voice-verified

Is that a desirable way to treat social media? voice-verified

Professor Owen Whelan, Professor in Business Analytics, Society, University of Galway. voice-verified

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