01x01 - Social Studies

[bunniefuu]

Good morning, even though

it's not even remotely morning.

Um

Coming back to

school has brought on

a new level of

anxiousness that I feel--

I don't think I've ever

really experienced.

[Jenna] Hi, can

you talk right now?

I'm just, like, stressed

about what to wear to school.

[Jasmine] [over laptop] Yeah, I feel

like everyone's stressed about that.

[scoffs]

I'm picking out the outfit that I

wanna wear for the first day of school.

This is what I have so far.

I'm really stressed

about going back.

[Jonathan] After the

pandemic, I'm definitely excited

to be back on campus after being

in E-learning for a year and a half.

[Jasmine] [over laptop] Would

you wear, like, what shoes, like?

That's a good question.

It helps to know, like,

-what you guys would be wearing.

-Okay.

So, I have an option

[Alec] You spent a

lotta time on your own,

and now you're getting into

a class full of 30 students

and it's just a lotta things

that go through your mind.

In person, you

can't mute yourself

and you can't turn

off your camera.

You have to show up to school

and you have to be perceived

by every single person there.

[exhales] School is starting.

[street traffic noise]

[♪ "jealousy, jealousy"

by Olivia Rodrigo playing]

♪ I kinda wanna throw my

phone across the room ♪ ♪

♪ 'Cause all I see are

girls too good to be true ♪ ♪

♪ With paper-white

teeth and perfect bodies ♪ ♪

♪ Wish I didn't care ♪ ♪

♪ I know their

beauty's not my lack ♪ ♪

♪ But it feels like that

weight is on my back ♪ ♪

♪ And I can't let it go ♪ ♪

♪ And I see everyone

getting all the things I want ♪ ♪

♪ And I'm happy for them,

but then again, I'm not ♪ ♪

♪ Just cool vintage clothes

and vacation photos ♪ ♪

♪ I can't stand it, oh,

God, I sound crazy ♪ ♪

♪ Their win is not my loss ♪ ♪

♪ I know it's true ♪ ♪

♪ But I can't help

getting caught ♪ ♪

♪ Up in it all ♪ ♪

♪ Co-co-comparison

is k*lling me slowly ♪ ♪

♪ I think, I think too much ♪ ♪

♪ 'Bout kids who

don't know me ♪ ♪

♪ I'm so sick of myself ♪ ♪

♪ I'd rather be, rather be ♪ ♪

♪ Anyone, anyone else ♪ ♪

♪ Jealousy, jealousy, yeah ♪ ♪

♪ All your friends

are so cool ♪ ♪

♪ You go out every night ♪ ♪

♪ In your daddy's nice car,

yeah, you're living the life ♪ ♪

♪ Got a pretty face, a

pretty boyfriend too ♪ ♪

♪ I wanna be you so bad,

and I don't even know you ♪ ♪

♪ All I see is

what I should be ♪ ♪

♪ Happier, prettier,

jealousy, jealousy ♪ ♪

♪ All I see is

what I should be ♪ ♪

♪ I'm losing it, all I

get's, jealousy, jealousy ♪ ♪

♪ Co-comparison

is k*lling me slowly ♪ ♪

[Geo] Good morning.

Everybody make some noise.

[cheering and applause]

It's been a crazy year.

You guys weren't

able to be on campus.

And you had to do your whole

freshman year from E-learning.

Give yourselves a pat

on the back right now,

because you did it.

[cheering]

And we want you

to have a vision,

kinda like Steve Kerr,

will.i.am, Forest Whitaker.

Does anybody know what all

these people have in common?

[microphone feedback]

If you said they all

went to Pali, you're right.

Steve Kerr

and he won NBA

championships as a coach.

Decorated coach and player

[Geo] We got will.i.am,

Grammy-nominated, uh, performer.

[Geo] um, Forest Whitaker.

[Geo] will.i.am used to

do hip-hop freestyle circles.

Forest Whitaker

[Ella] Oh!

[Geo] He was a thespian

here on this campus.

[Geo] He studied theater

and now he's a superstar.

[♪ light music playing]

[Ella] I'm Ella and I

live in Los Angeles,

but more specifically the

west side, so Mar Vista.

Since the pandemic,

my social media use

has increased by

a lot, by, like, 100%.

I used to, like, read

and do a lot of art more

and now, instead,

I'm on my phone.

Before, you were interacting

with people, like, face to face,

you didn't really need to

use your phone that much,

but now, like, it's the only

form of interaction most days

and so, you just--

it's the only way you kind

of feel connected to anyone.

I like to mainly,

like, go on TikTok.

I like that it's social,

like, the social

part of social media

and I like that you

get to see, like, art,

people being creative

and, like, funny things.

I think that part is cool.

[speaker] [on TikTok

audio] Help! He's escaping!

The k*ller is escaping!

[Ella] Sometimes I make

TikToks if I have a funny idea,

even if I don't actually post it

or if I'm just feeling pretty.

[♪ lip-syncing to

"Won't Bite" by Doja Cat]

I kind of want to be the

Manic Pixie Dream Girl.

But I don't think

that's fully me.

[♪ lip-syncing to "space

girl" by Frances Forever]

I've never fully

been just one thing.

[♪ lip-syncing to "Bad

Romance" by Lady Gaga]

I tried to get off, but

then you just feel like

you're missing out and it’s,

like, really hard to get off of.

-[phone notification]

-[Dr. Lee] How sweet is it

that none of them are

on their cell phones?

I'm pretty impressed about

that. That's upstanding.

They're like, "We're not

addicted to that," you know?

[Ella] I think especially

with quarantine,

it's amplified the need

to have a connection

and I think that's a good

part about social media.

[speaker] [in video] Hi, friends.

Today I'm eating like Khloé Kardashian

for the day who apparently

[Ella] I definitely fell into

a little rabbit hole,

especially earlier

quarantine over summer.

My social media,

like, consumption,

it was, like, 12 hours a day.

I definitely found myself,

like, comparing to people

online that I didn't even know.

People will take videos, like,

whether they're drunk or high

and it looks so much fun.

All of my friends, we

were all kind of like,

this is cool, you didn't

have anything else to do.

[Dr. Magee] The past year-plus

has been really strange for us all.

So, we wanna make

sure that you are okay.

[Ella] Now that

we're back in school,

I hope that my personal

social media use goes down.

But I also think it'll be so much

more incorporated into everyone's lives

because we rely

on it so much now.

[Rustin] To be kept updated, make

sure to follow our class Instagram,

and thank you guys so much.

So, make sure to

follow that Instagram.

[cheering and applause]

[Lauren Greenfield] When

I first started this project,

my hope was to document

the first generation of kids

that had grown up with

social media their entire lives.

So, what we're doing is a

project about social media.

So, since you guys are all on

your phones at the same time,

would you mind screen recording?

We needed the kids to

share their social media,

so we could understand the

content of what was impacting them.

-Are you screen recording now?

-[Jenna] Yeah.

-[Lauren] Are you on screen recording, Ella?

-Yeah.

[Lauren] Are you screen

recording right now, Alec?

Uh, yes. My phone's

over there, though.

[Lauren] Okay. Maybe just

grab your phone so you've got it.

-This was kind of a huge deal.

-Okay.

But they slowly let us into

their social media worlds.

Sharing their private accounts,

their digital experiences,

their social media feeds.

Access to these private worlds

reveals so much more

than social media content.

It's a window into coming of age

in the time of social media.

[softly] Oh, God. [chuckles]

[Lauren] An influence that now

touches every part of growing up.

[indistinct chatter]

Teenagers from schools

across Los Angeles

agreed to share

their lives for the year.

[indistinct chatter]

It's so cute.

[Lauren] We have a therapist

if anything we talk about

is activating in any way.

If, today, you could just do

the sign language for clapping

if you relate to what

somebody says.

And, um, just one question,

-how do you feel without your phone?

-[crosstalk]

[Ellie] I was like, "It feels

like camp," you know?

[laughter]

I love that, I

love that feeling.

I love that feeling.

[Sydney] I keep on, like,

subconsciously tryna, like,

reach for my phone

and then be like,

"Oh, wait, I don't

have it, like"

I wanna ask you guys about,

like, when fame became important.

Like, when did you start

noticing, like, if you

had a lotta followers,

if you had a lotta views,

like, when did it

become important

to be known in that way?

Hey! Ugh, finally, I'm here.

Diary two, take two.

I mean, take three.

And cut!

I've always wanted to do this.

I'm Ivy.

I am 17, going on 18, and

I'm a senior at Pali High.

Gotta take a picture.

I have been on

social media for years.

[♪ "Toxic" by Britney

Spears plays in video]

A lot of my childhood

is, like, a big blur.

The details are always fuzzy.

I was very lonely

and I would live inside my head.

I feel like my social

skills weren't that good.

So, I was bad at making friends.

Sorry, I don't have my

friends with me today,

but, um, that doesn't

mean we can't have a party!

Hello, people. I'm on the moon.

I cannot breathe,

but-- [shrieks]

[Ivy] I was just, like,

imagining that I would

post myself on YouTube

and I'd be famous

and everyone

would, like, adore me.

It let me see myself

in a way that I didn't get

to in any other situation.

[♪ singing]

And I could fully be myself.

[Jordan] For teenagers,

social media is kind of, like,

the only way for us to,

like, kind of communicate,

like, that's how we,

um, express ourself.

I've always loved social media.

Even when I'm

bored or when I'm sad,

it's always been, like, kind

of like my own safe place.

[Ella] I feel like YouTube

really shaped my childhood,

and I watched it a lot

when I was younger.

[Ivy] Mostly, I spend

my time on TikTok.

I love to educate myself

and I love to learn new things,

but once you start scrolling,

it doesn't really

end. [chuckles]

How to

[Ella] I learned thrifting tips,

I learned different styles

that I don't like and I like.

I learned what games I liked.

I learned what I liked to watch.

I learned the type

of people I liked.

Basically anything you

want to find on TikTok,

you can find by

searching, like, the words.

So like, "book" and then

adding "tok" to the end of it.

So, there's, like,

"cooktok," there's "booktok,"

there's "witchtok," which

is one of my favorites.

So, you can always, like,

find someone to discuss with.

Like, I just don't

have that in real life,

so I'm really happy

that I have this app.

[Lauren] Do you

guys have a sense

of what the For You

Page knows about you?

-Like--

-[Jenna] It's so scary.

-[Maren] It's terrifying.

-[crosstalk]

I swear to God the

phone's, like, listened

to what I'm saying

'cause, like, actually

[Jack] I don't really use

TikTok other than posting.

What's the craziest

thing you've ever done?

I mean, I guess

some trends, like,

there was the crate challenge.

[person chanting]

People would fall

from the top one

and then they'd

go to the hospital.

-[people shouting]

-[sirens wailing]

Then there was the

devious licks challenge.

Devious lick is, like, stealing

something from school.

Like, a soap dispenser, but,

like, stealing something big.

It's, like, theft,

but it's a trend

so people think it's

not as bad as it is

'cause it's in a TikTok bubble.

[Jack] Someone actually

broke one of the toilets,

which was kind

of-- it's not funny,

but it's just, like, it's crazy

that the world has came to that.

[Jordan] I know some stuff

where parents are just like,

"Okay, I don't want my daughter

knowing that at a young age."

But I feel like social

media's helped me in ways

where it's, like, oh, you

can tell from right or wrong.

If I didn't really

have social media,

I would probably just be

a very lousy 14-year-old.

Maybe that, maybe that's

how I envision myself.

[dog barking]

My name is Jordan.

I'm starting 10th grade at

Palisades Charter High School.

Since last year,

when I was just online

for that whole year,

I was just incredibly

lonely at that time.

So, I didn't really

connect with people.

I have to get to the

bus at, like, 6 a.m.

Okay.

Okay. 10 outta 10.

Are you ready to go?

[bus driver] Bye,

have a great day.

Bye, have a great day.

[Jordan] It's a big school and,

um, I mean, I am a little nervous.

[sighs]

It's really intimidating

'cause I was like,

"Oh, my God, all

these other kids,"

which is why I'm kinda scared

of, like, going up to people.

I'm just hoping to have a

friend group that cares for me

and I don't have to go through

this high school

experience alone.

-[teacher] Hi. Jordan!

-[Jordan] Hi.

People in real

life are definitely

way more intimidating

than people online.

For, like, internet

friends, it's easier.

Even though they don't

know where you live

or how old you are.

[notifications chiming]

ophist philosophy

evolved into a more

radical level of more realism.

Pragmatic social philosophy

unfettered by moral considerations

[Ella] I'm realizing that I can't,

like, sit still in class anymore.

Like, I can't just put everything

away and pay attention.

[Mr. Rauschuber] So,

we get this now, right?

Behaving, generally,

in a conventional way

that affords us the

most social power?

Alright, let's open

up the reader.

"Calvin and Hobbes,"

you guys know

[Ella] Teachers don't really

tell me to shut off my phone.

Either they know or they

don't know, I don't know.

But, like, I'm listening and I

participate in class all the time,

it's more something to keep,

like, the restless part

of my brain active.

Especially because of COVID.

I don't think anyone

has any attention,

all of us are always, like,

on our phones or

on our computers,

just doing something,

just to do something.

[Jack] Aye, any of you guys

wanna be in a TikTok interview?

It's just for fun.

-[student 1] Maybe next time.

-[Jack] Maybe next time?

-Alright. You wanna be in it?

-[student 2] No.

[Jack] Alright, so the

question for today:

How much does your fit cost?

Oh, like, just my outfit?

[Jack] Yeah, your

outfit, break it down.

[Jai] Cargo pants,

nothing crazy.

-[Jack] Yeah, yeah.

-Probably 20-25.

[Jack] Aye, love

to hear it, man.

[student 3] Got these

shoes, about a, about a K.

-[Jack] Aye, awesome, man.

-[Jai] Wait, a thousand dollars?

-[student 3] Yeah.

-[Jai] Whoa!

[Jack] That's crazy.

So, who has the more

-expensive fit?

-[student 3] Oh, me.

-[Jack] What would you say?

-Hey, I still look better, though.

[student 4] Big fan

of your work, bro.

-[Jack] Appreciate it.

-[student 5] That was too funny.

-[Jack] That was good.

-[student 5] Dude, send the f*cking--

-Send the thing, Jack.

-[Jack] I will.

[students chattering]

[bird chirping]

-[Keshawn] Do we come in?

-[Ms. Moore] You can.

Your phones need to go up

today because I can't have that.

So, if you need to charge,

feel free to plug it in.

[Keshawn] Craziest

thing, I mean,

I didn't even bring

it today, you know?

-It's like-- -[Ms. Moore] Yeah, I

think I really don't believe that.

[Keshawn] Just one of them days.

[Ms. Moore] Are you eating in

my classroom with your mask off?

[Keshawn] Actually, I'm not.

[Ms. Moore] It

looked like you were,

but I must've

been seeing things.

-[Keshawn] Mm-hm.

-[Ms. Moore] Uh-huh.

My name is Keshawn

and I'm a 12th grader

at Palisades High School.

You see all type of things

at Palisades, you know?

You can see the rich kids.

You can see who don't

really have it like that.

And comin' from Westchester

some of the kids, like,

is livin' the dream

that we are grindin' for.

My dad is from Chicago,

big-time g*ng member.

And I grew up-- been

chased, been robbed,

been shot at, seen

bodies, seen everything.

My mom is from Belize.

She knew what I was

gonna be eventually

if I stayed on that side,

so, since a kid, she

brought me far away

from them, you

know, raised me right.

So now, I'm focused on

making everybody proud.

[Ms. Moore] Hi, guys,

come on in, come on in.

Keshawn, you're three.

[Keshawn] I'm actually 17.

[Ms. Moore] Oh, my gosh, did

you remember your phone now?

-It's a miracle.

-[Keshawn] Yeah, you're right.

[Ms. Moore] You forgot your

phone, but you actually didn't.

-You have it.

-[Keshawn] I forgot it was in my pocket,

-I meant to say.

-[Ms. Moore] Oh, gosh. I hate when that happens.

[Keshawn] I transferred

from my old school to Pali

for one reason: play football.

I used to sneak on the

bus to go to the games.

Like, I was really just all

about football back then.

I really loved the sport.

That was, like, my ticket out.

But things didn't

fall out that way.

I lost focus in school

and started to slip a little.

I got kicked off

the football team.

[♪ "Making Moves"

by kdgetuchies playing]

When I didn't have

football, I didn't have nothin'.

And that's when

DJing came around.

I bought my, my studio equipment

and it sparked somethin' in me.

It's where the magic happens.

Instagram started my DJ career.

That's how people can get in

touch with me to DJ at the party.

"Are you available this

and such and such"

My dream is to be the

millionaire of the family.

[ambient street noise]

Hey, do you guys wanna

be in an interview for TikTok?

It's about your outfit.

No? Alright. It's all good.

Aye! Do you wanna be in

an interview about your outfit?

-[pedestrian] Sure.

-Alright, bet. Let's get it.

-[pedestrian] Okay.

-Alright, so the question for today.

How much does your fit cost?

-My fit?

-Your outfit.

A lot.

Good question. He

pays for most of it.

[Jack] I film a lot of my

content at Rodeo Drive.

'Cause you see all

the drip and all that.

Shoes, like, I think,

like, were a thousand.

Sheesh. You got them Diors on.

[pedestrian] About

20 racks on the watch.

Sheesh!

-$1,500.

-Sheesh.

-Ah, 40 bucks.

-Aye! We love to hear it!

You're keepin' it humble.

Humble? This is pretty nice

in w-- in, uh, the Midwest.

At first, it was just for

the fun, the exposure.

I thought it'd be sick

to help build my image,

but I didn't know it was really a

job where you could get paid for it.

Oh, that's fire

-I did do Noah Beck.

-Yeah! I saw that video.

You started that,

right? 'Cause there's--

[Jack] I started it, that's me.

I-I am the fit check guy.

There was some on YouTube,

but it was all like this, you know?

No, no one was doin'

it on TikTok like this.

-Yeah, it was cool.

-Yeah, good meetin' you.

After that, I got 340K

followers on TikTok.

I see you got the ice.

Could I diamond test you?

-Yes, you can.

-Oh, for real?

-[tester beeps]

-Okay, he valid, yessir!

And Snapchat reached out to

me and I signed a deal with them,

they're paying

me too, so it's cool.

It's a win-win.

-Another TikToker!

-[Matt] Another TikToker!

-Alright, so I'm here with

-J Money.

[Jack] How much

does your fit cost?

Probably $800.

Plus, I got all this,

-I mean, it's gotta be, like--

-That's legit?

That's crazy. And what

about the hoverboard?

I haven't seen one of

these in-- since 2016.

So, have you been doing

the social media thing

as, like, a job or a

hobby, a side thing?

[J Money] Uh, I do it

as, like, my full-time job.

[Jack] Mm, yeah, you could

make good money off it.

-[J Money] Yeah. I work hard.

-[Jack] It's cool, yeah.

-Aye, it's a grind, man, it's a grind.

-It's a grind.

-It's not easy.

-You know, you know. You're out here grindin'.

-You know.

-I am. I am, I really am.

It's the LA life, you know?

Peace out. Live it up.

-Aye!

-[Matt] [laughs] The slow fade.

The slow fade.

[Jack] That's fire.

[♪ "TWINNEM"

by Coi Leray plays]

Oh, yeah, I like that one. Okay.

[Keshawn] I knew the

sauce, the formula to go viral.

It's in that couples

TikTok page.

we, we like this,

and then I go, and

you drop your head.

[♪ "TWINNEM" plays on phone]

-♪ And my twinnem ♪ ♪

-♪ Just me and twinnem ♪ ♪

-♪ Yeah, that's my twinnem ♪ ♪

-[chuckles]

♪ Go best friend ♪ ♪

-[♪ songs stops]

-Mm?

Me and Amari have

been datin' a year now,

about to be two.

-[both laughing]

-We're popular on TikTok.

[♪ hip-hop song playing]

It's all about the

sound you use.

[Amari] When we

popped out as a couple,

a lot of people shared it,

they sent it to other people.

Our followers say, "You

guys are always so goofy

"and comfortable

with each other.

I want a

relationship like that."

[Keshawn] If it's funny, people

are gonna like it, comment about it.

Start the TikTok algorithm

and it's gonna keep makin' money

if you keep gettin'

followers and fans.

You know, you start

a TikTok to be in that

TV show-movie-type life,

you know, where everything

comes easy for you.

[both giggling]

[Lauren] Who in

here has gone viral?

Show of hands.

Oh, my gosh,

everybody's gone viral.

With, like, Kim K,

like, she got famous

for the sex tape.

And so, like, with

platforms like TikTok

where, like, anybody

can get famous, that's, like,

if you put out content

like Kim Kardashian did,

maybe you'll get famous.

If I could become

a multi-millionaire

with a giant company,

and, like, be as famous

as Kim Kardashian,

I would release my

sex tape, a sex tape.

-She's all set up now.

-[Maren] Her whole life is set up.

She's super famous, she

has, like, millions of dollars.

She has her own company,

so does all of her family.

Her mom definitely, like,

conspired that whole thing.

[Ivy] When you have the most

followers and the most comments,

that's really-- it's

something that we all want.

When you first join Instagram,

they don't know

what you like to see.

So, on your explore

page, they show you, like,

a little bit of everything.

And I saw, like, this

really cute baking account

with, like, beautiful

pastel colors.

And then I saw this one picture

of a model and she was kind of

lifting her shirt up so

you could see her boobs.

And I looked in the comments

section and I remember seeing,

"Don't be shy, take

the shirt off all the way."

And my mom, she's very strict

about the things that I watch.

The sexualization of

women was something

I hadn't totally been

exposed to at the time,

so it was really

weird to see that.

Like, I had realized

that it isn't just,

ya know, fairy tales

and happy people.

Growing up in,

like, this little bubble

that my mom had put me in.

Seeing people, like, judge

other people, even in a nice way,

it was really weird.

"Wow, everyone has an

opinion on this one girl.

"This is a lot

for me to take in.

"Like, what if, what

if I post a picture?

Like, how is everyone

gonna react to that?"

[Jordan] I feel like nobody

really slides up on your story

unless you post, like,

something, like, really revealing.

Like, if you post your face,

they'll kind of just, like, go past it.

But if you, like, post,

like, your boobs with it,

they'll be like, "Oh, my

God, you look so good!"

Or "Heart eyes."

A lot of us don't post

about our passions

because I've

posted, like, pictures,

photography pictures

that I've taken,

even, like, sunset pictures,

those get zero likes.

And so, it's like,

"Why even post that?"

[♪ light music playing]

[Sydney] My name is

Sydney and I'm a freshman

at the University of Arizona.

When I was in

high school at Pali,

I would post pictures that

were just not normal to post

for being a minor.

But that's what you see online

and on TV and everywhere,

and that's what's marketed.

Social media's more

about looking good

and appealing to

what other people like.

And I, like, tagged

my Instagram account,

like, so people would be like,

"Oh, she's, like, hot.

I'll follow her Instagram."

Like, I would post on TikTok

to get more followers

on Instagram.

Like, it's, like, a whole cycle.

I think it's brave sitting in

front of a camera at my age

without plastic

surgery. [laughs]

I'm Dani.

I am a mom of two

daughters, Sunny, who's 13,

and then I have

Sydney, who is 18.

I'm a total Facebook

geek. I like Facebook.

Is it okay to say that?

I post a lot.

I've chronicled my life

really starting as a mom.

I definitely pay attention to

which of my posts get likes.

I try to be funny.

I'm pretty political.

But I get a lotta likes

when I post my kids.

You know, I think

people feel like

they are part of your family

when they see

your kids growing up.

And I always put pictures

of them, I'm proud of them.

And, of course,

as they got older,

I would run it by them and

say, "Is this okay to post?"

I got Sydney a phone when

she was, I wanna say, 12.

Pretty much all the

moms in town did that

because we just

wanted to make sure that

we were in touch with

our middle schoolers.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

In the beginning, it was fun.

She would do Musical.lys

with her friends.

I got in on the action,

and it felt innocent.

And then, as TikTok emerged,

it just seemed less

about fun and more about,

"What do I look like? How

good are my dance moves?

What cute outfit can I

wear to show off my body?"

You know, obviously, looking

good is very important to her.

She's very fashionable.

She'd get blonde highlights,

and then she

wanted just brunette.

She started getting ear pierces.

They just kept

growing on her ear.

She learned really

quickly about makeup.

They know how to prep

themselves for a good Insta.

And she would--

she'd get upset with me.

But I'd say, you know, I

just-- "Please take that down."

Or, "I just don't think

that's appropriate."

But then I have to, like, check

myself. Like, is this my issue?

It's just a very

different generation.

I don't want to, in any way,

shame her for feeling confident

and body positive,

but it's frightening.

It's frightening to

see how sexualized

some of these images are.

[Sydney] I definitely

have a following,

especially in my

private accounts.

[Dani] Sunny has

been a very good PI.

She discovered Sydney's TikToks,

and Sunny's five years younger.

Sunny tells me,

"Mom, I think some of them

are really inappropriate."

[♪ "Money" by Cardi B plays]

I really don't look

at Sydney's TikTok.

I sort of don't wanna

look at Sydney's TikTok.

[♪ downbeat music playing]

[Sydney] I've gotten,

like, older men

commenting on my posts.

[♪ light music playing]

I think that if you post

certain pictures

on social media,

guys will expect that you

are down to hook up with them

or send them nudes or whatever.

I've had conversations

where I've had to tell a guy like,

"No, ew, I can post

what I wanna post,

that does not mean

that you get anything."

[Dani] You know, a few times

her father and I have sat her down

and we'd give her one of

those "scared straight" talks.

Like, how we didn't

want a phone call

where we found out that our

daughter was dismembered.

Like, girl, there are a lot

of nutty people out there.

And it just-- N-- It

didn't seem to change.

I'm not exactly sure why

Sydney feels the need

to express herself in

that provocative way.

I don't know, I don't

know why I post that stuff.

That's so

embarrassing. [chuckles]

And I think that shows that,

like, I've grown as a person

that I can kind of

admit that and, like--

I think if you cringe

at your old stuff,

you can see that, like,

you've kinda grown,

but it's like, "Ugh."

And it got, like, a few

thousand likes. So, like

[awkward chuckle]

[phone ringing]

[Stella] Hi, this is

Stella from Teen Line.

What's your name?

[speaker] Would it

be alright if I asked you

two more questions

[Alec] You feelin' alright?

[Jonathan] Teen Line is a

teen-to-teen crisis hotline

to provide understanding

and support for teens

for whatever

they're goin' through.

[Cooper] What happened earlier?

[Jonathan] Hey, this is Teen

Line. What's your name?

Hi, Mila. How old are you?

Fourteen. Awesome. And does

that make you in ninth grade?

Eighth grade. What's

going on tonight?

Mm-hm.

Okay. On what website

did you meet him?

[Charlotte] If you're

comfortable telling me,

have you had any of

those thoughts recently?

[Cooper] How old are you?

Thirteen, so, does that

mean you're in 7th grade?

[Jonathan] Well,

thank you for-for calling

and-and for

sharing that with me.

That must've been really scary

to be talkin' to someone

who's that much older.

Especially when you

don't know them, right?

[♪ light, serious

music playing]

Yeah, absolutely.

You mentioned that

you don't wanna tell

them what happened.

Was there something specific

that happened with this person?

Okay. And when you say

he was talking inappropriately,

what do you mean by that?

Was he sending

these pictures to you?

Okay.

And-And when he was

giving you his address,

did he say what that was for?

And does he have any

personal information about you?

This is not your fault.

What, what this guy did is,

is completely inappropriate

and-and-and predatory, right?

'Cause he was 20 years

older than you, right?

And so, it's really scary

to be in that-that situation,

and-and what he

did was really wrong,

and so, sometimes it

can be hard to open up

considering the things

that he sent you, right?

And to open up and

to talk to someone.

I think by doing Teen Line,

I've become more

consciously aware

of the effects that

social media has

in the lives of teens.

I think a lot of the issues have also

affected me in some way or another.

But I don't post

a lot of myself.

So, I'm still active,

like, I use it every day,

but I don't necessarily

post about my life

or the things that are

happening to my life.

At school, I developed

and currently run

our video program.

I really enjoy making

mini-documentaries

about current events and issues.

And since I'm a part of

this social media project,

I wanted to interview

other kids from the group

so I could understand how

their mental health is affected.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

[Ivy] A lot of people

use social media

to make themselves feel

less alone who are struggling.

It's almost become a sort

of, like, social media club.

Like, "Oh, I'm

depressed, join the club."

I'm officially off the

rails. You should try it.

[Ivy] It almost feels like something

that you wanna be a part of.

Like, you wanna be able

to relate to other people

and that's just become,

like, being mentally ill.

I honestly used to think that

ADHD was just being hyperactive

and then, TikTok told me

that that is not the case.

I'd done my research

into what it actually was

and I was like, "Yeah,

this is definitely me."

[voiceover] ADD

check! Put a finger down

if you pick at your

fingers in any way.

Put a finger down

if you pull on

[Ivy] Some of these

posts are really helpful,

especially to people who

can't afford to, like, go to therapy

or get, like, a

psychiatrist to, like,

diagnose what's wrong with them.

I feel like I need to be

diagnosed with ADHD.

I'm so sure that I have it.

If I was diagnosed, I would

have extra time on tests.

I wanna go to a good

college next year.

So, I have to get gr-- Like,

I have to get good grades.

Well, I mean, I know-- Mom,

I already know everything.

Like, I, I know everything

that needs to be done.

I just need to make

an appointment

with a psychiatrist

to get diagnosed.

Yeah, I'm trying

to get a diagnosis.

But I haven't been able to

'cause, if it's online,

then you have to be 18.

It's to get more time,

but they also, like--

it's not even just tests,

it's, like, on homework too.

Because, like, my biggest

problem was, like, late assignments.

I wonder why. It's because

I-- I just have trouble focusing.

That's, like, one

of the symptoms.

But, um,

no, it's, like, help

with everything I need.

I don't need one to be--

Mom, Mom, Mom,

I don't need pills

and I'm not gonna be

seeing them for a long time,

I just need to

meet with one once.

[Sherry] [on phone] Okay.

[Ivy] My mom doesn't

believe in medication,

she doesn't believe

in psychiatrists.

Are you saying goodbye?

I get the impression

she doesn't believe

in mental illness at all.

I'll talk to you, I'll talk

to you about this later.

-[Sherry] Okay.

-I love you.

-[Sherry] Love you too.

-Bye.

I live in Santa

Monica with my dad.

My parents got separated

right before I started high school.

It was something that I knew

was gonna happen for a long time,

and, like, my older

sibling had gone to college,

so it was kinda, like,

I was the only child.

Finding stability

was really hard.

I move around a lot.

Once, I moved seven

times in seven months.

So, I don't really know how to

make friends and keep them.

[♪ music fades out]

Mom!

[Dani] One second, dear!

Mom.

-What's goin' on?

-[Sydney] I can't find an outfit.

[Dani] Um, do you wanna

look in my, in my closet?

[Sydney] No.

What about this? Can push

it down on your shoulders?

Um, I-I wouldn't even know

where to look in this pile.

-Let's see.

-[Sydney] No.

[Dani] I think

just-- I think jeans.

-No. No, I look fat in jeans.

-No, you don't. You do not.

I actually think that's

gonna look really good.

But it's more that you

have to feel good ins--

you know, it's gotta-- you gotta just

feel good, boo, and you gotta be

You got-- It's gotta

start in here, and

Yeah, I'm gonna just try

maybe this with this skirt

-that I'm wearing or jean shorts.

-[Dani] Okay. Yeah, okay.

[both] Okay.

[Sydney] Jean shorts.

[dog barking]

Yeah.

[sing-songy] ♪ Gorgeous! ♪ ♪

-Okay, fine.

-[Dani] Yeah?

Yeah. Yeah, that's good.

[♪ light music playing]

[water running]

-[Anaya] That's a cute color.

-[Ella] Thank you.

Oh, your color looks

so good on you.

[Ella] It makes your eyes

look, I don't know, it just makes

-your eyes look really pretty.

-I know, I started doing this in, like, 8th grade

and I haven't went back since 'cause

it just, like, makes my eyes look bigger.

[Ella] Yeah, that's what it is.

And, like, my eyes,

for some reason,

I'm really insecure

about the size of them.

[Ella] Why? They're so pretty.

'Cause I feel like

my eyes are uneven.

[Ella] I think you look

at them too much.

Oh, you know what's

the best for inner eye?

This. This little pen.

I don't like to wear that

much. I'll literally break out

[Cooper] You know, for a

while, I did struggle with, um,

wanting to be thinner

and look different

and match the people I

was seeing on social media.

[Alec] This might be

pretty controversial,

but I feel like one of the

major beauty standards

is you kinda have

to be Caucasian.

Like, sometimes when

I'm on social media,

I try my best to not

compare myself to others,

but then it tends to be when

the dude g-gets all the comments,

it's usually just a white

guy with, like, wavy hair,

colored eyes, tall,

like, pretty shredded.

-[teens chuckling]

-And sometimes I'm just like

"How would life

be if I'm just white?"

I've caught myself

thinking like,

"Ah, dude, what

if I'm just white?"

Like, "Wouldn't it be

better sometimes?"

I feel like that just

make-makes a big difference

if-- just based on the race.

[Dominic] Because I'm brown

and-and I'm a bigger person,

I guess you could call

me a cyber-bully's field day.

Random people will seek me out.

Just yesterday someone

was commenting on my post.

They'll call me a "fat

f*gg*t," for example,

that's one that

they love to use.

It, it took a toll

on me, for sure.

I was missing days of school,

I was not ever able

to get out of bed,

I was in this constant

state of t*rture.

Social media bullying

is definitely prevalent.

And I know it doesn't

really seem like a big deal,

but it is a huge deal.

And it f*ck' sucks. Yeah.

[Jonathan] One

question I have was,

what's your experience been like

with social media throughout high school

and even into college on a more

general level, just to start with?

So, yeah, I've had really

positive experiences,

but I've also had a lot

of negative experiences.

In 10th grade, my best friend,

he always liked me in a way

that I had never really liked him,

but I was very clear

about that to him,

and I guess he just

couldn't handle that.

He released a "diss track,"

which is basically a rhyming,

almost song-like thing which

had been sent to everybody.

-[♪ diss track plays] -♪ Look,

how many times have you f*cked up? ♪ ♪

♪ Fake as a snake,

you bi-polar a*s b*tch ♪ ♪

♪ I'm callin' the shots

now, exposin' your a*s ♪ ♪

[Sydney] He sl*t-shamed me.

♪ You got f*cked,

you're loose ♪ ♪

[Sydney] He knew

all of my secrets.

♪ Never a girlfriend,

just used for head ♪ ♪

♪ Easy to get,

easy to spread ♪ ♪

[Sydney] My insecurities.

♪ Got a fugly, wide physique,

ninth grade was your peak ♪ ♪

♪ I'ma end you ♪ ♪

[Sydney] The main way it

was sent was through Snapchat.

[♪ unsettling music playing]

Somebody sends

it to their friend,

and then, their friend

shows it to other people.

And it can be, in one click,

sent to a thousand people.

So many people had seen it

before I had even

known about it.

I'm just going to every class

and people are looking

at it on their phones.

-[phone dings]

-They would laugh about it,

and I'd hear people

talking about it.

I felt like everybody

was staring at me

and I just dreaded

going to school.

I was just judged

off of what people

thought they knew about me.

When all this was going on,

did you reach out to friends?

Did you sort of keep

it more to yourself?

Honestly, I fell into a really

dark place during that summer.

I kept everything to myself.

It took a lot to, like,

open up to people

and now, I'm talking

to you about it.

Are there other people

who have gone through stuff

similar to kind of what

I talked to you about?

[chuckles]

-[Bella] The lighting is still really pretty.

-[Holly] It is.

[both] Should we make a TikTok?

-[Holly] Whoa!

-[Bella laughs]

What sound should we use?

[♪ "The Boy Is Mine"

by Brandy & Monica plays]

[♪ lip-syncing]

I know. [laughs]

I had a crush on a boy.

It wasn't a severe crush,

but just a little freshman crush,

um, and [bleep] told

me that she liked him.

She basically made me

say, like, swear that we both

weren't allowed to get with him.

And, you know, I

was sneaky. [laughs]

I did, um, get with him and

she found out by a friend,

and she was really mad at

me, which was reasonable,

she had every right

to be mad at me.

I lied to her.

Um, but, ya know, then it

started turning into social media.

[Holly] There's just so many

things we could get into about this.

There's so many details,

so many stories of her

going batshit crazy.

I feel like she's made

a couple TikToks.

-[Bella] Yeah, well, she has.

-[Holly] Yeah.

-She, like--

-[Bella] I'm shaking.

[Holly] Her and her sisters,

like, zoomed in on your face.

[Bella] Someone

sends me a TikTok

and it's her and her sister

filming me, uh,

sitting with all the boys

and basically saying I

wanted the whole crew.

[song on TikTok] ♪ She want

the whole crew, shawty brave ♪ ♪

[Bella] Basically saying I wanted

to sleep with all of the guys.

She would just post a

lot of things about me.

Her number one name

was, like, "sl*t" and "wh*re."

Like, that was just her

favorite word to use.

People, like, hated me.

I wanted to just hide.

[♪ melancholy music playing]

[phone notification]

Did I ever read you

that, like, little notes thing,

like, if I could ever

say it to her, I would.

-No, never.

-Do you want me to?

Yeah, show me.

So, I was like, "You're

so lucky you bullied me

"instead of someone

who isn't as strong

"because the sh*t you

caused me would genuinely,

"like, make someone

k*ll themselves.

"Thank you for giving me the

strength to be kind to people

because I would never want anyone

to be put in the same situation as me."

[getting emotional]

[sniffles]

-[softly] Sorry.

-It's okay. It's okay.

If you don't, if you don't wanna

read anymore, you don't have to.

[exhales] Yeah. [laughs]

Not only was it

just social media,

it would just be situations

outside of school.

Like, we were standing

outside of someone's house

and I just hear, like,

15 girls at the same time

screaming "sl*t,"

screaming "wh*re."

Everywhere I could go,

like, she would be there.

I didn't go out on the weekends,

and I would see on social media

everything that

people were doing.

And it sucked, but there

wasn't much I could do about it.

[Matt] Have you figured

out your birthday yet?

[Jack] Yeah.

-What are you doing, where?

-It's at a venue.

-In LA? Downtown or?

-Yeah.

Uh, nah, it's in Culver City.

[Matt] Are you doin' it with

someone or by yourself?

[Jack] Uh, with a few friends.

Which parent is signing for it?

I signed for it.

-Oh, yeah?

-Yeah.

They didn't ask for

much detail, just a Zelle.

They don't, like-- And

I'm getting insurance too.

-Oh Yeah.

-They make you get insurance.

So, you know

Got it for a good price too.

-[Matt] How much?

-$2,000.

That's super cheap. Do they know

underage kids are gonna be there?

Uh, yeah.

[laughing]

[Matt] Wow.

[Jack] My friend that's

doin' it with me split it,

so I only put in $1,000,

and they put in $1,000.

-Who are you doin' it with?

-This girl named Scarlett.

She has the same birthday as me.

[Matt] Are you guys

gonna make money,

or it's just a celebration?

[Jack] Probably free for our

friends, but for randoms, money.

[Matt] [laughs] Yeah,

you gotta pack the house.

It's gonna be off the chain.

I know. I just hope it

doesn't get shut down.

In, uh, 2020, my friend and I,

we wanted to throw a

party at my dad's house,

which is at an apartment

complex in Marina del Rey.

We rented out the

lobby or whatever.

I'd say there was

about 200 people there,

which was pretty cool and

we charged, like, $10 each.

And I guess, at the time, we were

just doin' it kind of for, like, the--

you could say "clout" or just,

like, "attention" or just "fun."

We didn't really think of it

in a business perspective,

and we found out you could

make a lotta money for that.

So, I guess that's when the money

and business mindset just started.

The friend groups

have their own parties

and if you're not

in that friend group,

then you don't go to that party.

So, it's really hard

to meet people that

you're not friends

with because, in class,

people don't really,

people don't really care.

They, like, have their friends and

they wanna stick to those people,

they're not really interested

in making new friends.

[Cooper] Yeah, I mean, there

was even a party last night

that I wasn't invited to.

And it was just, like,

everyone was posting it

and I was, like,

home with my sister,

and I definitely felt FOMO.

Honestly, the FOMO

thing, it's FOMO, right?

That's, that's a real thing.

Like, I feel that sometimes.

Like, if I can't go out,

like, I got somethin',

I'll be like, "Damn."

I'll see on my

Snapchat, group chat,

my friends will be, like, at this,

like, fire function or somethin'.

[Lauren] And did anybody hear

about Jack and Scarlett's party?

[Scarlett] Yeah, I got a lot

of, like, people I never talk to

text me and be like, "Hey, I

heard you're having a party,

like, can I come or

can I bring people?"

Which is just, like, fake 'cause

I, like, have never talked to them,

so it's, like, weird.

I wanted to throw a

party with Jack Schwartz

because Jack has, like, a ton

of friends, a ton of connections.

[Jack] Definitely every

kid in LA knew about it.

I'm pretty well-known, I

guess, on the West Side of LA.

Everyone knows Jack.

I kinda did the marketing

side of the party,

which got a lotta people there.

I don't want high

schoolers to think, like,

it's a "random rager."

I want it to have that more,

like, "exclusive" feeling.

So, we made an

Instagram account.

We posted on our

Instagram stories,

and our Snapchat

stories, it got hype,

and we didn't accept

everyone at the beginning.

Each day, we accepted

a few more people.

They were texting me like, "Yo,

can you accept me to your party?"

And then, the week

of, we told everyone.

And that's just

when it went crazy.

The day of, it was the

most talked about party,

most anticipated.

[partygoer] Cash or

Venmo! Cash or Venmo!

[Jack] And we had a line,

like, goin' down the block.

Even if it, like, it wasn't

my party and I went to it,

I would be like, "Damn,

this is a fire party."

Jack is the GOAT!

Jack is the GOAT.

[Jack] We didn't really

wanna, like, promo that like,

"Yo, like, bring your own alc."

We just said no alc is allowed

if it's "visible," like

with quotations.

But I guess people kinda

found ways to sneak past that.

[Scarlett] A lotta people

pregamed, definitely.

Like, a lot of kids already

showed up intoxicated.

[♪ upbeat music playing]

The mosh pit

was, like, sweaty,

and, like, it was just

so claustrophobic,

which was definitely,

like, Euphoria vibes.

And the drinking, the smoking.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

One of, like, the main goals

is to hook up with someone.

Before parties, they're like,

"Who are you tryna get with?"

People just find a room.

I had a goal, and I actually

accomplished the goal.

[partygoer] Where

we at right now?

We at Jack's

motherfuckin' party!

-[partygoer] Where we at?

-Aye, we lit as f*ck!

[Jack] Everyone was kind

of just, like, showing off.

Like, "Oh, I'm at

Jack's birthday party."

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

[Bella] I went to

Jack Schwartz's party

and the first thing I see

when I walk in is her.

I know, like, they

don't like each other.

One of 'em bullied

one of 'em at school.

[bleep] bullied

Bella, but I don't know

'cause [bleep] is, like, one

of the nicest people ever.

At least to me.

[Bella] Anne and I go

to the bathroom together.

And we walk out,

and she's waiting in

line for the bathroom,

and she just screams

The party goes on.

I was dancing.

And she's walking up behind

me and she pushes me.

Pretty hard too. Wasn't

just, like, a light push.

Like, she pushed me pretty hard.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

All of my friends

were just like,

"No, don't, don't talk to her.

Like, it's not worth

it. Whatever."

[phone notifications]

How's it goin', guys?

How's it goin', guys?

We're here. Vlog squad.

Vlog squad. I'm in the mic.

Happy birthday to the girl.

-What's your name?

-I'm Bella. Hi.

Shout out Jack Schwartz, man.

-Shout out Jack Schwartz!

-He put this all together.

-I love you. Mwah! I love you, Jack!

-Shout out Jack! Shout out Jack!

[Jack] It definitely

got outta hand.

Some kid was, like, swinging

from the second balcony.

There was one kid

who apparently OD'd.

That's scary, that's scary.

That's also why we purchased

insurance for the party.

Just for stuff like that.

'Cause if something were

to happen, God forbid,

then, like, we wouldn't

wanna be liable.

I did see a boy,

like, throwing up.

Like, he was on his side and there

was just throw-up coming out of him.

Someone told me he was foaming.

[Jack] When he got sick, he

was kinda layin' on the floor.

He was passed out. His

friends were tryna wake him up

and he was, like, he

was just dazing in and out.

Can you guys not film this?

And then some girl was like,

"Yeah, we gotta call the hospital."

We all agreed, like,

"Yeah, this guy gotta go."

We don't want him

to potentially die.

So, we called the

hospital, called 911.

I was like, "Aye, like, the

party can't get rolled over him."

Rolled meaning, like,

they come, catch everyone,

and then, we get in trouble.

So, some kids, like, dragged

him a few blocks away

and then called the ambulance.

[Jack] They didn't shut

down the party, luckily.

And at that part of the

party, it was just chaotic.

[partygoers yelling]

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

[sirens wailing]

His friends got him

in the ambulance.

They're cool kids and they didn't

wanna, like, snitch on the party.

[partygoer] Everybody

inside right now!

[Jack] So, they just said,

like, they had no clue,

like, they just

found him like this.

[sirens wailing]

So, it was crazy.

[♪ "Fomo" by Max Mill playing]

♪ We've all had Fomo ♪ ♪

♪ That time you

were a no-show ♪ ♪

♪ Now you lookin'

at the photos ♪ ♪

♪ Mad you didn't go,

stayed your a*s at home ♪ ♪

♪ Bet I hit it on

the nose, tho ♪ ♪

♪ I rarely ever get Fomo ♪ ♪

♪ I be glad I didn't go ♪ ♪

♪ Glad I didn't go, I

don't wanna know ♪ ♪

♪ Don't miss your boat

that's what the most say ♪ ♪

♪ Drive myself,

finna fit the Jose ♪ ♪

♪ Found myself at your

door like Postmates ♪ ♪

♪ The oldest habits

the hardest to break ♪ ♪

♪ We can run it back and

get it poppin' like Pompeii ♪ ♪

♪ Afraid of missin' out on

every moment I can't make ♪ ♪

♪ Say oh Melo,

that's rudimentary ♪ ♪

♪ Close that door,

there's no reentry ♪ ♪

♪ We've all had Fomo ♪ ♪

♪ That time you

were a no-show ♪ ♪

♪ Yeah, you lookin'

at the photos ♪ ♪

♪ Glad you didn't go,

stayed your a*s at home ♪ ♪

♪ Bet I hit it on

the nose, tho ♪ ♪

♪ I rarely ever get Fomo ♪ ♪

♪ I be glad I didn't go ♪ ♪

♪ Glad I didn't go, I

don't wanna know ♪ ♪

[♪ song concludes]