Subway Science for Informed Riders
Create research-backed public service announcements for New York City subways to educate riders on how technology truly impacts youth development.
Project Leads
Fran Blumberg, Associate Professor, Graduate School of Education
Jenn Lilly, Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Social Services
Linda LoSchiavo, Director of Quinn Library
Project Description
Public service announcements (PSAs) sharing current research findings about digital media effects on child and adolescent development (e.g., relationship between social media usage and perceived friendship support among adolescent females) will be posted in New York City subway cars. PSAs targeting developmental content are not the norm on the New York City subway and are needed to bring science to the public, especially when the public is deluged with misinformation.
The PSAs will be prepared as 2-3 sentences designed to informally educate riders about the effects of digital media on development, as grounded in scientific research rather than unsubstantiated moral panic. Exposure to content based on the latter leaves the public vulnerable to misinformation and leads to uninformed decisions about how to use digital media effectively and safely. This campaign is designed as one way to counter this misinformation.
The target audience will include riders of all ages and all socioeconomic statuses. PSA content will be selected by a curriculum advisory board overseen by Graduate School of Education professor Fran Blumberg. She is a cognitive developmental psychologist whose research addresses media effects on children and early adolescents. Her work also addresses media and AI literacy. The committee will include faculty, researchers, and administrators within and outside Fordham who study the effects of media on children’s development. This committee will be charged with identifying content addressing a particular digital media focus (e.g., social media, artificial intelligence) for the initial project cycle (4-6 weeks). The community advisory board, comprises parents, children, and community leaders, who will provide further review of the content to ensure that it is accessible and engaging.