(Pixabay photo)
A study found that social media binds people to it so much, some have used the term superglue. The study found that four factors associated with the gambling industry and its slot machines, look to be involved in sticking/addicting people to social media.. The study said the four superglueing factors were 1) isolation, 2) bottomlessness, 3) speed, and 4) teasing, or giving you almost what you want. Those factors were found to create a kind of recipe for overuse for nearly everyone. Another study found that "social media algorithms are controlling how we communicate and interact." While there can be benefits from social media, excessive usage can make people unhappy and contribute to a variety of negative outcomes. Like slot machines and pornography, social media often promises to be satisfying, but often fails to deliver. Are there any Satanic connections as the devil is "the prince of the power of the air" (Ephesians 2:2)? What should children and adults to about social media? Steve Dupuie and Dr. Thiel discuss these important matters.
Here is a link to a related article: Researcher ties 4 features that superglue kids and adults to screens like social media to gambling industry - Church of God News
TRANSCRIPT: Social Media Superglues People to Screens
Greetings, friends. This is Steve Dupuie for the Bible News Prophecy Program with Dr. Bob Thiel, bringing you news and analysis of world events in light of Bible prophecy.
Everywhere I go—from eating in restaurants to nature walks to sporting events—people have their noses stuck in their cell phones. What’s up with that?
There are benefits to mobile cellular telephones, but a lot of people seem to be at least semi‑addicted to them. This week, NPR posted an article titled “The surprising origin of four features that superglue kids and adults to screens.” It mentioned two landmark cases where social media companies were found liable for endangering and harming children. Meta and Google want to appeal these rulings and dispute the idea that their products are addictive.
For over a decade, scientists have identified features in social media and other apps designed to hold people’s attention as long as possible. These features create “a kind of superglue on the apps,” according to cultural anthropologist Natasha Dow Schüll of New York University. She explained that these features keep us spending more time on the apps, more money, and drain us of our energy and sense of self.
During the trial in California, the attorney bringing the case against Meta and Google said the apps were designed to behave like digital casinos. That comparison is appropriate because major design elements in social media have surprising roots in the gambling industry.
Meta and Google should just admit to the success of their development departments. After all, high use—or addiction—was the point of the app. Tell us more about how this is tied to digital gambling.
The NPR article tied this to slot machines—specifically video slot machines. Back in the 1980s and 1990s, the casino industry purposely created what many scientists consider the most addictive form of gambling: video slot machines. They’re like giant apps played on huge screens with ergonomic chairs attached. Some people play for 24 or even 48 hours straight. Some even told Schüll they wear adult diapers so they don’t have to stop gambling.
Schüll found four key features that, when combined, hold people on these devices and trigger a trance‑like or dissociated state known as “the machine zone” or “dark flow,” where people lose track of time and place. The article listed the four “superglue” features:
Solitude — When the relationship is just between you and the machine, it removes social cues for stopping.
Bottomlessness — Endless videos, photos, comments, and content. No natural stopping point. You never feel finished or satisfied.
Speed — The faster people play or scroll, the harder it is to stop. High‑speed feedback creates a sense of merging with the screen. The speed at which we find new material has jumped with technological advances, including high‑speed internet and infinite scroll.
Teasing (Almost giving you what you want) — Apps use AI to determine what you’re hoping to find—even if you don’t know. Then they withhold the reward, giving you something close, then closer. This creates a recipe for overuse.
When apps combine solitude, bottomlessness, speed, and teasing, it becomes especially harmful for children.
Every time I search for something, I’m inundated with things that are almost what I’m looking for.
Yes, that’s the teasing feature. It’s also a key factor in gambling and pornography. The Bible warns in Isaiah 55:2, “Why do you spend your wages for that which does not satisfy?” And it’s more than non‑satisfaction—pornography was basically the major initial funding for the commercial internet, along with gambling and excessive social media use.
In 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General issued a report calling social media an urgent public health issue for youth mental health. Evidence shows both positive and negative effects, but concerns are growing about how social media affects mental health and wellbeing.
With court rulings against Meta and Google and the Surgeon General’s advisory, is the risk finally being addressed?
Despite the rulings, another article came out the same week titled “Social media algorithms are becoming increasingly dangerous.” Algorithms are controlling how we communicate and interact, shaping behavior, attention, and even how we think.
The article described how people feel anxiety when their phone buzzes and they don’t check it. Algorithms amplify emotionally charged content, reinforce perspectives, and make people instinctively reach for their phones whenever they feel boredom or discomfort.
A professor at California Lutheran University explained the concept of habitus—how daily practices reward or punish us. Scrolling rewards people by freeing them from boredom, making it feel like they’re in control, even though the algorithm is actually controlling what keeps them engaged.
Could we say any of this is satanic?
Yes. In many ways, this is how Satan works. The Bible calls him the “god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4) and the “prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2). Satan fosters hostility toward the way of peace, and people consider this normal. Just like gambling tricks, pornography, and algorithms, Satan’s ways often seem natural and normal.
Since we all use cell phones, where do we go from here?
Children and adults should limit entertainment time on the internet or cell phones, never intentionally view pornography, and often keep their mobile phones turned off.
We should also put on the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6:11–18). We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against spiritual forces. With God’s help, we can change. As Paul wrote in Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
We also produced another video on how to change your life in five seconds—simply say, “Jesus, help me.”
You and your children can break the superglue of social media, gambling, and pornography if you obey God’s Word, rely on Jesus, and support the work of God.
Thank you, Dr. Thiel. For more interviews with Dr. Thiel, and for written and audio articles, visit BibleNewsProphecy.net.
This Bible News Prophecy Program is sponsored by the Continuing Church of God. For more information, including access to free literature, visit BibleNewsProphecy.net or CCOG.org.
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