Charity makes satirical appeal on behalf of tech billionaires

Smartphone Free Childhood (SFC) has released a satirical film fronted by fictional tech billionaire “Zack Zingerberg” — a heartfelt appeal to parents and government asking them to let him keep profiting from children’s attention.

The film, timed to coincide with the UK Government’s review of tech and young people, flips the conventional campaign format.

Rather than calling for change, it advocates for those who benefit most from the status quo — the social media platforms whose business models depend on engagement.

The campaign was sreated by creative consultant Dulcie Cowling and Sam Ojari, with production by NUSA Studios.

Joe Ryrie, co-founder of Smartphone Free Childhood, said: “Some of the richest and most powerful companies in human history are making billions from capturing as much of our children’s attention as possible, whatever the consequences. We wanted to use satire to shine a light on the absurdity of that business model in a way that people would actually watch, remember and share.”

Dulcie Cowling added: “It’s quite dark when you stop and think about what’s going on — but humour is the best tool we have. It’s a handy little trojan horse.”

Over 100,000 people have signed SFC’s petition calling on the government to raise the minimum age for social media access to 16.