"The parent WhatsApp group known colloquially as Satan's Slack channel is one of those parenting surprises no one warns you about. People tell you about the sleepless nights, the lost identity and the toys that reproduce overnight. But no one says: You'll one day discuss nits with 30 adults as though global peace depends on it. What began as a simple way to share school updates has mutated into a relentless stream of chatter."
"You wake up to messages, you go to sleep to messages, you duck into a meeting and come back to 64 unread notes about sunscreen. Linda has posted the same information seven times because she doesn't trust anyone to read it. Which, to be fair, is accurate. When I was growing up my parents got information the old-fashioned way: crumpled notes in backpacks and gossip at pickup. They weren't part of a digital micro-community of helicopter-adjacent strangers debating uniform policy."
Parent WhatsApp groups have evolved from simple school-update tools into relentless, intrusive communication channels. Messages arrive at all hours, producing notification fatigue and repetitive postings. Routine topics such as sunscreen reminders or event dress codes generate high-volume debate among many parents. Traditional information flows like crumpled notes and pickup gossip allowed for healthier distance and less constant engagement. WhatsApp enables long-distance contact but its always-on nature collapses boundaries between parenting and other life domains. The result is increased anxiety, amplified expectations for real-time responses, and a pervasive sense of digital surveillance among caregivers.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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