Press and blog
Where Before The Internet has been featured
Coverage of our phone-free events, everything we have written about running a room without cameras in it, and the independent research behind all of it.
THE GLOBE AND MAIL
FEATURE
National feature on phone-free nightlife, with Max Ward on how a shared restriction changes the way a room behaves.
BLOGTO
FEATURE PROFILE
BLOGTO
EVENT SPOTLIGHT
CURIOCITY TORONTO
FEATURE
CBC METRO MORNING
RADIO
A live broadcast interview segment on CBC Radio One 99.1 FM rather than a standalone web article.
Writing about phone-free events, lockable phone pouches or screen-free culture? We are happy to talk, and we can put you in a phone-free room to see it for yourself. Email connect@beforetheinternet.com or send us a note.
The blog
Writing on phone-free events
Twenty-six pieces on what actually happens when the cameras go away, sorted by the kind of room. Every one of them is about a room Before The Internet runs.
If you are researching phone pouch rental, working out whether to rent phone pouches or buy them outright, or just trying to find out how lockable phone pouches work before you commit to a phone-free event, start here. When you want a number instead of an article, tell us the date and the headcount.
The evidence
The numbers behind phone-free
Everything below is from independent research, policy trackers and journalism. No vendor press releases, including ours. Where a figure comes from a competitor’s summary of a study, we have linked the study.
66 min
Average daily phone use by US teenagers during school hours.
JAMA PEDIATRICS
6 weeks
The instructional time that adds up to across one school year.
JAMA PEDIATRICS
39 states
Plus DC now require districts to restrict student phones. 28 plus DC are bell to bell.
19%
Of the public opposes school phone bans. Support is not the obstacle.
POLLING CITED BY NEWSWEEK, 2026
EDUCATION WEEK, 2026
1 in 4
Students spend more than three hours a day on their phone. Social media is 70% of student screen time.
UNC WINSTON CENTER
~800
Participants in the study that found cognitive capacity drops as a phone becomes more noticeable, even switched off.
WARD ET AL., 2017
144×
Times a day the average American checks their phone, for about 4.5 hours in total.
CONSUMER AFFAIRS, CITED BY AXIOS 2026
63%
Of Gen Z say they intentionally disconnect from their devices. Millennials 57%, Gen X 42%, boomers 29%.
TALKER RESEARCH, 2025
11 states
Have restaurants or bars running some form of phone restriction. DC has the most, with five.
AXIOS, 2026
86.5%
Of phone use at the table is social networking and texting.
CITED IN MORNING BREW, 2026
68%
Of Gen Z say social media is integral to live music events. The objection to answer, not avoid.
LIVE NATION, CITED BY BLOOMBERG
871,000
Deaths a year the WHO links to loneliness, the backdrop to phone-free hospitality.
CITED IN INSIDEHOOK, 2026
Guides
City and school guides
Local guides to phone pouch rental in 55 cities, plus our guides for schools going phone-free: which countries and states have banned phones, what pouches cost, and why schools should buy them outright.
Schools and phone bans: Why Schools Should Buy Phone Pouches Instead of Renting Them · How Much Do Phone Pouches Cost for a School? A 2026 Price Guide · School Phone Bans by Country: The Full 2026 List · Which US States Have Banned Cellphones in Schools? The 2026 Guide · School Cellphone Bans in Canada: Every Province and Territory in 2026 · Ontario's School Cellphone Ban: What It Requires and How Schools Enforce It · Quebec's Full-Day School Cellphone Ban, Explained · England's School Mobile Phone Ban: What the 2026 Law Means for Schools · School Mobile Phone Rules in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland · Ireland's School Phone Ban and the €9 Million Storage Fund · France's School Phone Ban: From Écoles in 2018 to Lycées in 2026 · New York's Bell-to-Bell School Phone Ban: What Districts Need to Know · Texas's School Phone Ban: What HB 1481 Requires · California's Phone-Free School Act: What AB 3216 Requires · New Jersey's Bell-to-Bell School Phone Ban: What Districts Need to Know · Why Schools Ban Phones: What the Evidence Actually Says · How to Roll Out Phone Pouches in a School: A Practical Plan · The Phone-Free Schools Toolkit: Everything You Need to Get a Phone Policy Approved · Board Memo Template: Recommending a Bell-to-Bell Phone Policy · Parent Letter Template: Announcing a Phone-Free School Day · Bell-to-Bell School Phone Policy Template · How to Present a Phone Ban to Your School Board: A 15-Slide Outline · Italy's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Finland's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Sweden's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Denmark's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Iceland's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Greece's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Cyprus's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Portugal's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Luxembourg's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Austria's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Hungary's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Latvia's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Poland's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Bulgaria's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Slovenia's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Slovakia's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Croatia's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Belgium's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Spain's School Mobile Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Germany's School Phone Bans: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Switzerland's School Phone Bans: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · The Netherlands' School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Does Estonia Ban Phones in Schools? What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Does Lithuania Ban Phones in Schools? What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Is the Czech Republic Banning Phones in Schools? What Schools Need to Know · Are Phones Banned in Ukrainian Schools? Where Bill 15105 Stands in 2026 · Mexico's School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Brazil's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Chile's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Peru's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Bolivia's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Ecuador's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Are Phones Banned in Costa Rica's Schools? What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · The Dominican Republic's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Argentina's School Phone Rules: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Colombia's School Phone Rules: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Are Phones Banned in El Salvador's Schools? What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Uruguay's School Phone Ban Bill: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Panama's School Phone Bill: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Australia's School Mobile Phone Bans: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · New Zealand's School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · China's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · South Korea's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Does Japan Ban Phones in Schools? What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Does Taiwan Ban Phones in Schools? What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Singapore's School Smartphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Does Indonesia Ban Phones in Schools? What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · The Philippines' School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Malaysia's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Vietnam's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Does Thailand Ban Phones in Schools? What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Are Phones Banned in Indian Schools? What School Leaders Need to Know in 2026 · Are Phones Banned in Pakistani Schools? Punjab's Rules Explained for 2026 · Bangladesh's School Mobile Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · The Maldives' School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Kazakhstan's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Uzbekistan's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Mongolia's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Israel's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · The UAE's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Saudi Arabia's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Egypt's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Are Phones Banned in Moroccan Schools? The Rules in 2026 · Kenya's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Are Phones Banned in Ghana's Schools? The SHS Rule in 2026 · Uganda's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Rwanda's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Are Phones Banned in Nigerian Schools? State Rules in 2026 · British Columbia's School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Alberta's School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Saskatchewan's School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Manitoba's School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · New Brunswick's School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Nova Scotia's School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Prince Edward Island's School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Newfoundland and Labrador's School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Indiana's Bell-to-Bell School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Maine's Bell-to-Bell School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Rhode Island's School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Kansas's Bell-to-Bell School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Vermont's School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know for 2026-27 · Hawaii's School Cellphone Policy: What Schools Need to Know for 2026-27 · Ohio's School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Georgia's School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Maryland's Phone-Free Schools Act: What Schools Need to Know Before 2027-28 · North Dakota's Bell-to-Bell School Cellphone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Albania's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Turkey's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Georgia's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Norway's School Phone Rules: What Schools Need to Know in 2026 · Serbia's School Phone Ban: Where the Draft Law Stands in 2026 · Romania's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026
United States: New York City · Austin · Charlotte · Chicago · Columbus · Dallas · Fort Worth · Houston · Jacksonville · Los Angeles · Philadelphia · Phoenix · San Antonio · San Diego · San Jose
Canada: Toronto · Calgary · Edmonton · Halifax · Hamilton · Kitchener-Waterloo · London, Ontario · Montreal · Ottawa · Quebec City · Regina · Saskatoon · St. John's · Vancouver · Victoria · Winnipeg
United Kingdom: Belfast · Birmingham · Bristol · Cardiff · Edinburgh · Glasgow · Leeds · Liverpool · London · Manchester
Ireland and Europe: Amsterdam · Barcelona · Berlin · Brussels · Copenhagen · Dublin · Lisbon · Madrid · Milan · Munich · Paris · Rome · Stockholm · Vienna
66 min
Average daily phone use by US teenagers during school hours.
JAMA PEDIATRICS
6 weeks
The instructional time that adds up to across one school year.
JAMA PEDIATRICS
39 states
Plus DC now require districts to restrict student phones. 28 plus DC are bell to bell.
19%
Of the public opposes school phone bans. Support is not the obstacle.
POLLING CITED BY NEWSWEEK, 2026
EDUCATION WEEK, 2026
1 in 4
Students spend more than three hours a day on their phone. Social media is 70% of student screen time.
UNC WINSTON CENTER
~800
Participants in the study that found cognitive capacity drops as a phone becomes more noticeable, even switched off.
WARD ET AL., 2017
144×
Times a day the average American checks their phone, for about 4.5 hours in total.
CONSUMER AFFAIRS, CITED BY AXIOS 2026
63%
Of Gen Z say they intentionally disconnect from their devices. Millennials 57%, Gen X 42%, boomers 29%.
TALKER RESEARCH, 2025
11 states
Have restaurants or bars running some form of phone restriction. DC has the most, with five.
AXIOS, 2026
86.5%
Of phone use at the table is social networking and texting.
CITED IN MORNING BREW, 2026
68%
Of Gen Z say social media is integral to live music events. The objection to answer, not avoid.
LIVE NATION, CITED BY BLOOMBERG
871,000
Deaths a year the WHO links to loneliness, the backdrop to phone-free hospitality.
CITED IN INSIDEHOOK, 2026
Further reading
The research library
The articles, studies and policy trackers we rely on, grouped by the kind of room. Useful if you are building a case for a school board, a venue owner or a producer.
SCHOOLS: POLICY AND LAW
NEWSWEEK
State-by-state map of where bans apply and at what level.
K-12 LEGAL INSIGHTS
The compliance view, including IEP exemptions and the 2026 Surgeon General’s Advisory.
PATCH
The current headline numbers, drawn from Education Week’s tracker.
HARVARD KENNEDY SCHOOL
Analytical rather than advocacy. The safest single link to send a school board.
LOCKEDIN
A directory with primary sources for every state.
SMARTPHONE FREE CHILDHOOD USA
Grades each state’s legislation and publishes a model bill.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Names pouches alongside lockers as an approved storage method.
SCHOOLS: RESEARCH
JOURNAL OF THE ASSOCIATION FOR CONSUMER RESEARCH
The academic case for pouching rather than asking. Willpower is not the variable.
UT AUSTIN
The plain-English summary of the study above.
BLUUM
The most honest survey of the evidence, including where it is weak.
EVERYLIBRARY ACTION
Second-order effects, and the finding that students participate more once they are not worried about being filmed.
SAFETECH NC
Advocacy, but the footnotes are a reading list of the primary research.
SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN
The counterpoint. A meta-analysis where only working memory showed a significant effect.
JONATHAN HAIDT AND THE WIDER MOVEMENT
THE ANXIOUS GENERATION MOVEMENT
Free toolkits for schools, parents and legislators, including a parent memo template.
MIT NEWS
Haidt’s Compton Lecture, and the four reforms including bell-to-bell schools.
WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM
The Davos version, with a state governor describing a phone-free school pilot.
EDUCATION WEEK
The best answer to the hardest objection: what do students do instead?
CONCERTS AND TOURING
ROLLING STONE
The biggest phone-free touring story to date. Roughly 45 shows across 10 countries.
NME
The international routing.
BLOOMBERG
The best piece on what a phone-free room feels like, written from fan accounts.
EVENT TICKETS CENTER
The operational reality, downsides included.
COMEDY AND THEATRE
THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER
The foundational comedy article. Everything since is downstream of it.
BROADWAYWORLD
Theatre adoption, including a production protecting performer privacy rather than IP.
PHILLYVOICE
The Hannibal Buress case, and the clearest illustration of the IP argument.
WEDDINGS
THE KNOT
The photographer’s case, and the vocabulary couples actually use.
ROBYN ASHLEY, NYC OFFICIANT
Written after 300+ ceremonies. The most practical piece on enforcement.
SNAPEEN
Reframes unplugged as a trade rather than a ban.
RACHEL E LIGON PHOTOGRAPHY
The vendor-side view, with the editing cost argument.
RESTAURANTS, BARS AND NIGHTLIFE
AXIOS
The anchor piece for hospitality, dense with numbers.
NPR
Reported from inside a venue that pouches phones for two hours.
FOX NEWS
The industry counterpoint, arguing enforcement is awkward in practice.
MORNING BREW
Short and quotable.
INSIDEHOOK
Frames it against loneliness rather than etiquette.
FILM AND TV SETS
THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER
Tarantino runs a check-in booth. Gerwig’s argument is about dignity, not leaks.
LOS ANGELES TIMES, VIA IMDB
Cinema as an act of presence. Forbidden on his sets since day one.
BLUE STAR SECURITY
Lists no-phone zones as a named control alongside NDAs and credentialing.
Compiled September 2026. Policy counts move quickly, so check the trackers before quoting a number.
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Tell us the date and the headcount. A human being will reach out within 24 hours.
A human being replies within 24 hours · No discovery call · From 50 pouches
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