Latest news with #GenZ-ers
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Adults of all ages are paying $1,000-plus to play like kids at summer camp again — and they say it's worth it
Where tug of war and 'tini time' unite. For Jaime Gullotti, the week away couldn't have come at a better time. 'I was going through an ugly divorce, and my parents were like, 'You need to go do something new,'' the 43-year-old office manager from New Hampshire tells Yahoo. Gullotti was intrigued by an ad she saw on social media for 'Camp' Camp, a summer camp for LGBTQ adults in Maine. She had relished her childhood summers at sleepaway camp and was curious about how the experience would translate into adulthood. So in 2014, she packed her trunk and headed north. Turns out, camp was just as good as she remembered. 'It was just really fun,' she says. 'It was all the things that you want on a vacation: lots of activities, really good food and really good people.' Fast forward to today: Gullotti has been to 'Camp' Camp every summer for the past decade and also volunteers as a group leader. She has a tight-knit community of camp friends and even met her partner of 10 years on the grounds. 'You go on a vacation and say, 'It was really nice to meet you,' but then you never keep in touch,' Gullotti says. 'At camp, I've become not just vacation friends but actual friends with these people.' Fulfilling a need Why would a grown adult willingly sleep in a cabin with strangers, eat food from a mess hall and participate in wacky team-building activities like Olympic games and lip-sync battles? For Mike Farley, who has been to Camp No Counselors events across the country for the past 14 summers, it's a break from reality with some of his favorite people. 'Looking forward to the experience is one thing, but looking forward to seeing those people in that setting makes it fun,' the 42-year-old operations director from Orlando tells Yahoo. Last year, he went on a cruise with 25 friends from camp, and in March, 30 of his buddies descended upon Orlando for a mega-birthday celebration. More and more adults are seeking out adventure, friendship and fun in the woods: Yelp's 2025 trend forecast notes a staggering 347% increase in searches for adult summer camp between 2023 and 2024. In an era in which more than half of adults under 44 feel lonely or isolated most or all of the time, camp can be a powerful antidote to the lack of connection so many are experiencing. At camp, age is just a number. In 2024, for example, 'Camp' Camp hosted Gen Z-ers, octogenarians and everyone in between. 'When you put aside what you do for work or what circles you would normally run in, things feel so much more open and easy,' says Makyla Harvey, 22, a digital marketing specialist from Maryland. She has attended Camp Social, a women-only retreat, for the past two years and is returning again this summer. 'I connected with women in their 20s, 30s, 40s and 50s.' At camp, attendees get to relive (or experience for the first time) that all-American, Parent Trap-style summer. Campers can sign up for quintessential camp activities such as boating, archery and arts and crafts, while on-site bars, gourmet meals, live music and nighttime skinny dips add grown-up excitement. Camp No Counselors runs Slip 'N Slide flip cup and morning ''tini time' — 8 a.m. espresso martinis to start the day strong. At Club Getaway in Connecticut, you can sign up for inflatable jousting and let loose at a toga party. 'At some point you have to grow up, but what's that look like?' asks Farley, who swears by arts and crafts as the ultimate hangover cure. 'Why do I have to? I can still do all the same stuff.' Finding your kind Some camps are out to make the experience life-changing in more ways than one. Campowerment, another women-only summer camp in the Pocono Mountains in Pennsylvania, offers an inner child workshop that helped Jennie White, a mental health and wellness counselor and advocate for children with special needs in New York City, heal from a childhood trauma. 'It gave that little girl breath,' says White, 43. 'It brought her out of that experience, and she was actually allowed to play and experience wonder in a way that I've never thought possible.' Upon her return, White left an abusive relationship, went to graduate school and learned how to drive — literally putting her in the driver's seat of her own life. She says being with other women made her feel safe during such a vulnerable experience. That's intentional, says Chelsea Leader Gold, Campowerment's CEO. 'It feels very protected,' she says. '[You are] in the sanctity of sisterhood. When you put women in an intentional space and with programming that allows them to explore, really cool stuff happens.' Gullotti agrees that being with like-minded people makes for an especially meaningful experience: At 'Camp' Camp, 'we all have queerness as a common denominator,' she says. But at the same time, part of the fun of camp is meeting people you'd never come across in daily life. 'You have different jobs, you have different circles of people, but when you're at camp, you might be holding a tug-of-war rope with this person, and all of a sudden, you have the same set of interests,' Farley says. Cozy vibes — for a cost Another draw of the experience? Screen-free time in nature. Instead of doomscrolling after dinner, for example, nights are spent hanging out in front of the campfire with s'mores or yukking it up at the talent show. At Camp No Counselors, photographers capture the experience and send pictures out after camp ends so campers can just enjoy being in the moment. 'I go and put my phone down for three days,' Farley says. 'You don't need it. If something happens at your job, what are you going to do? You're out in the woods.' Bear in mind a few days of roughing it can carry a steep price tag. A week at 'Camp' Camp is $1,975, while a weekend in the Poconos at Camp Social will set you back nearly $900. The (sold-out) Labor Day weekend session in New York at Camp No Counselors is $1,000, and four days at Campowerment will cost you nearly $2,000. A place to do you At camp, adults can strip away the persona they have in the real world to be true to themselves. 'Camp' campers, for example, are encouraged to try on new pronouns and dress however they're most comfortable. At Campowerment, campers are not allowed to share their occupation for the first 24 hours. 'Otherwise, it would become a networking event,' Leader Gold says. 'This is a place where we can be all the other parts of who we are.' That might include karaoke queen, amateur archer, capture the flag crusader or any other identity that doesn't often get air. But there's also the option to put all of that aside and just rest. Everyone's camp experience looks different. 'It's almost like freshman year of college,' Farley says. 'You have access to all of these things, but no one's watching you, so you don't have to do any of it.' Importantly, if you do want to do something, there's no pressure to do it well. Harvey says she appreciates that there's no 'competitive, mean girl energy' at Camp Social. For three blissful days, 'Kumbaya' really is a state of mind. 'It's like stepping into the Barbie movie,' she says. 'Literally a before and after' It's no surprise that after one memorable summer at camp, many people return. At Campowerment, for example, more than half of the attendees are repeat campers. Veterans like Farley and Gullotti take new campers under their wing, hoping they have the same transformative experience they did. 'It is literally a before and after for me,' Gullotti says. 'I would not have the community that I have now, the partner I have now or the life that I have now without camp.' Solve the daily Crossword
Newsweek
22-07-2025
- Health
- Newsweek
Nearly Third of Kids Now Look to AI for Emotional Support—Report
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A new study has found that nearly a third of children are turning to artificial intelligence (AI) for emotional support. While therapy and school counselors have historically been keystones of mental health resources for kids, the current younger generation has a new technology option to turn to. Why It Matters AI has skyrocketed in popularity, offering tools to boost productivity in workplace tasks and school assignments. While children often use technology to assist with research for their papers, AI has also proven particularly effective in helping humans address their mental health issues. However, limited research has been conducted about the possibility of long-term effects. In a May 2024 YouGov survey, 50 percent of respondents said the 24/7 availability and immediate access made AI chatbots helpful for mental health purposes. And 38 percent cited the chatbots' non-judgmental interactions as a pro. What To Know A new report from Norton found that 28 percent of parents said that their children turn to AI for emotional support. This trend is also reflected in the experiences of mental health clinicians. "I am seeing that a lot of children and young adults are returning to AI resources for emotional support," Kathryn Cross, a licensed professional counselor with Thriveworks, told Newsweek. "We also see this as a trend on social media. We are seeing people find comfort in AI responses, partly because they are receiving answers based on what they are looking for, rather than evidence-based advice." Children are facing unique mental health challenges, with 24 percent of parents in the Norton report saying their child has been cyberbullied. Roughly 41 percent also said their children turn to AI for companionship. Since many children are using tablets by the age of 2 and parents routinely give their kids phones before age 12, according to the Norton survey, the youngest generation may be facing loneliness and searching for meaningful relationships in a new and unprecedented technological environment. An April Gallup poll found that 79 percent of Gen Z, those born between 1997 and 2012, had used AI tools; however, 41 percent reported experiencing anxiety with the technology. Adult Gen Z-ers were more likely to say that AI made them anxious (53 percent) than their younger, school-age Gen Z-ers (21 percent). File photo of a smartphone displaying the ChatGPT logo resting on the keyboard of a laptop also displaying a ChatGPT logo. File photo of a smartphone displaying the ChatGPT logo resting on the keyboard of a laptop also displaying a ChatGPT People Are Saying Kathryn Cross, a licensed professional counselor with Thriveworks, told Newsweek: "While AI can provide what feels like useful insights on personal issues, it can also do damage, seeing as AI tools are unable to ensure long-lasting treatment based on evidence and real-life responses to crises. AI provides emotional support based on an algorithm, and it is programmed to give a response that is suitable for a person based on the wording used and the history that the program is picking up based on an individual's usage." What Happens Next The long-term risks of AI usage for therapy or emotional support are unclear, but experts warn that it cannot adequately support people in crisis like a trained human therapist. "The risk is that if someone is using AI tools as a replacement for therapy or other mental health treatment, these tools are unable to be hands-on with someone who is really in need of an interpersonal relationship," Cross said. "Nothing really compares to human to human contact and support."
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First Post
22-07-2025
- Politics
- First Post
Sex recession: Why Gen Z is saying no intercourse
Does Gen Z have a problem with sex? One in four Gen Z adults has had zero sexual partners, and they are masturbating less than before, according to studies. But why are they staying off sex? read more Gen Z are those born in the 1990s and early 2000s. They come after the millennials, also known as Gen Y. Gen Y came after Gen X – the original alphabet generation. Representational Image/Pixabay Gen Z has a problem with sex. Specifically that they can't get any – in what has been dubbed the 'sex recession'. This, according to Carter Sherman, author of The Second Coming: Sex and the Next Generation's Fight Over Its Future. Sherman, who is a reporter at The Guardian, interviewed over 100 Gen Z-ers under the age of 30 for her book. She previously worked for Vice News. But what do we know? What does it mean? Why is this happening? STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Let's take a closer look: A brief look at Gen Z First, let's take a brief look at Gen Z. Gen Z are those born in the 1990s and early 2000s. They come after the millennials, also known as Gen Y. Gen Y came after Gen X – the original alphabet generation. The data shows that over 60 per cent of 18- to 29-year-olds lean to the Left. Gen Z women are said to be the most left-wing bloc in history – particularly on issues such as the environment, gun control and abortion. What do we know? Sherman in her book said the data reflects the scope of the sex recession. She quoted a 2022 study as showing that o ne in four Gen Z adults have had zero sexual partners. She said in 2023, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed that a third of high schoolers had sex. That number was nearly 50 per cent in 2013. Sherman says Gen Z is even masturbating less than before. She said what she discovered was contrary to the media narratives that they are disinterested in sex or simply prudes. 'Many of them are very horny. They would like to be having sex, and in fact they feel a lot of shame over the fact that they haven't had sex yet or that they're not having sex enough', Sherman told Wired. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Sherman in her book writes that young people feel 'stranded before the maw of a vast and dehumanising internet.' The ubiquity of porn in the lives of Gen Z cannot be taken for granted. She described the internet as a 'TikTokian carousel of porn' and also a 'mass social experiment with no antecedent and whose results we are just now beginning to see'. Sherman said many Gen Z-ers had learned about sex from porn – which had impacted their ideas about sexual preferences. 'A lot of young people told me that they felt like porn had normalised 'rough sex' and in particular had normalized choking. If you're under 40, you are almost twice as likely to have been choked during sex. And I talked to one young woman who was telling me, you know, when she was first having sex in high school, and all of her friends were having sex, all of them were getting choked, and she was like, 'Some of us liked it, but not all of us liked it', Sherman told Wired. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The ubiquity of porn in the lives of Gen Z cannot be taken for granted. While some data show that nearly half of adult Gen Z-ers think porn is harmful, three-fourths of young Americans have done so by the time they turn 18, Worse, 15 per cent have watched it at age 10 or below. Why is this happening? Sherman has claimed that Gen Z is worried about being punished for having sex. Sherman has said that these attitudes are a result of sexual conservatism – which seeks to eliminate abortion and access to birth control – being on the upswing in America. This has become more far more acute in the aftermath the fall of Roe vs Wade. Sherman in her NPR interviewed described Gen Z as 'petrified' of the consequences of sex. '…I think that feeling that people are now going to face a kind of punishment for sex, because they'll be forced to have kids that they don't want — I think that is really rife within Gen Z. And that contributes to this overall miasma of anxiety and fear around sex that really doesn't lead people to want to have it,' Sherman said. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD She also pointed to the MeToo movement having unintended consequences of having created concern around sex but not providing women with ways to improve the system. Gen Z in America worried about being punished for having sex. This has become more far more acute in the aftermath the fall of Roe vs Wade. AP 'So for the young women I talked to, that makes the whole world just seem so much more dangerous because it just makes it seem like now you know that something bad happened, but no one else cares,' Sherman added. She also blamed Covid-19 for depriving this generation of real life experiences when it comes to sex. '…I think that they are very interested in sex, but they're not necessarily able to put it into practice as much. I mean, this is a generation that grew up during COVID, and so they missed a lot of key milestones — they just missed out on having that really critical IRL experience to know what it's like to try and get with somebody else,' Sherman said. With inputs from agencies
Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Movie theaters are in trouble. Gen Z is here to save them.
Streaming might be dominant entertainment right now, but young adults are seeking real-life community at the cinema. When young people turn out at the movie theater in droves, they make headlines for flinging popcorn and screaming. Accused of being antisocial homebodies, some theaters have tried to lure them off their couches and into their seats by letting them keep their tiny beacons of light and distraction out during phone-friendly screenings. Some say they're willing to turn their hallowed halls into amusement parks with bowling lanes and roller-coaster-esque 4DX screenings, all to boost their offerings and keep the hallowed tradition of theatergoing alive in the digital age. But as ticket prices rise and at-home streaming options proliferate, what if Gen Z is the movie theater industry's greatest hope? According to a Yahoo News/YouGov Survey conducted May 22-27, 2025, Americans surveyed say they prefer to wait to see a new movie when it's available on streaming (61%) rather than seeing it in theaters (23%). But young adults under 30 are the age group most likely to head to the cinema, according to the poll. About half (49%) have seen a movie in a theater in the past six months, and 60% in the past year. And when a new movie comes out, respondents under 30 were the most likely to say they'd see it in theaters (31%) vs. waiting for it to become available on streaming (53%), compared to adults 30 and older. So what's enticing them to put their phones down, travel to the theater and give the big screen their attention for a few hours? 54% of Gen Z-ers surveyed said they want 'an experience I can't get at home.' More than half of poll respondents under 30 said an interesting plot (56%) and lower ticket cost (55%) could persuade them to get their butts in seats too. 'The most coveted demographic' Though assumptions about Gen Z's affinity for phones and hatred of spending money might lead some people to believe that they might not love theatergoing, it's actually an organic part of the young adult experience. George Huang, a filmmaker and professor at UCLA, tells Yahoo it makes total sense that younger generations are more likely to go to the theater than their millennial, Gen X and boomer counterparts. They typically spend less time fretting about work, kids and taxes, Huang says. And Hollywood knows this. 'The most coveted demographic has always been young adults … economically, they have the most spare time,' he explains. 'And movies, in comparison to sporting events or live concerts, are still the cheapest ticket around.' Young audiences are also 'trendsetters and cultural arbiters of cool … and let's face it, who doesn't want to be cool!' Huang adds. 'A decline in Hollywood films' Studios have long had an eye out for young adults. Susan Doll, a film historian who teaches at Ringling College of Art and Design, tells Yahoo that the industry has prioritized reaching young moviegoers since the 1980s. In the years leading up to that decade, the artistic ambitions of legendary filmmakers like Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola led "to excesses in budgets and shooting schedules," which corporate conglomerates that bought film studios weren't particularly fond of. As a result, new executives focused on budget control and commercial franchises to boost profits. They noted the financial success of 1975's Jaws and 1977's Star Wars, and a 'fascination and then dependence on blockbuster movies' began. Executives also took note of the fact that young viewers would go to the theater to see movies like 1978's Superman and Halloween multiple times, creating a fan base that would carry over to sequels and series. 'These beloved films tended to be viscerally sensational, relying heavily on action, fast pacing, and special effects. They were also uncomplicated, and without irony or moral ambiguity,' Doll says. The young demographic then became the primary demographic. In Doll's opinion, the 'dominance of formula, the adherence to genres driven by expensive special effects, the embracing of the clichéd heroes played by costly stars and the acceptance of costly marketing strategies … please a young demographic, [but] the end result is a decline in [the quality of] Hollywood films,' she says. 'This generation of moviegoers ... is really smart' Still, the industry needs money to survive, and box office numbers don't lie: Audiences are flocking to see movies made for the youngest theatergoers. Five of the 10 biggest films at the domestic box office in 2024 — Inside Out 2, Wicked, Moana 2, Despicable Me 4 and Kung Fu Panda 4 — were rated G or PG, suggesting they were targeting young audiences that include children younger than Gen Z. But all 10 of them — even the PG-13-rated, Oscar-nominated Dune: Part Two and expletive-filled, R-rated Deadpool & Wolverine — were constructed from familiar intellectual property and involve the heavy use of special effects that studios have long used to target young people. Not every Gen Z theatergoer wants to see a blockbuster based on well-known characters. Multiple theater owners tell Yahoo that they were moved by the success of director Ryan Coogler's film Sinners, which is among the top three most successful movies at the 2025 domestic box office to date. Box office stats can't capture the trend in seeing older, classic movies that theater owners say they've noticed. When David Lynch died in Jan. 2025, the nonprofit Belcourt Theatre in Nashville screened his offbeat hits Mulholland Drive and Eraserhead. Those movies are accessible — and popular — on streaming services, but young people turned out in droves to see the auteur's masterpieces on the big screen, just as Lynch would have wanted. Stephanie Silverman, Belcourt's executive director, tells Yahoo she sees a lot of young people at the theater, and she's not alone. She spoke at a conference of European independent cinemas in 2024, where she heard that young audiences across the globe are showing up for the rereleases of prestigious classics like The Seventh Samurai and Princess Mononoke. 'This generation of moviegoers … is really smart. Whether it's spending time on [movie review social media site] Letterboxd during the pandemic, or having a curiosity about past filmmaking and how it connects to current filmmaking,' she says. 'They come in curious, wanting to see films that are recognized as important that they could watch on their televisions at home, but they want to see them in community.' This is a massive victory for theatergoing, Silverman says, because it creates lifelong customers. As these Gen Z-ers start families, they might have less time to go to the movies at first, but could pick that back up when the kids are old enough to go to the theater. 'Our fractured digital selves can feel whole' Since Gen Z was raised with easy access to technology and the internet, they spend that excess of alone time online. They still crave in-person events, though, seeking a sense of identity and community in an ever-fractured world. Theatergoing can provide that. Jack Goodson, a Gen Z expert known as the Identity Consultant, tells Yahoo that 'cinema isn't just a format — it's a ritual, and rituals matter more when identity is unstable.' 'Gen Z isn't saving cinema. They're reminding it what it's for — collective myth, emotional cohesion and the rare moment where our fractured digital selves can feel whole,' he says. But since Gen Z's moviegoing habits are driven by their desire to develop identity, some experts say studios could do a better job making movies that make them feel represented on-screen. Michael Tran, who co-authored UCLA's annual Hollywood Diversity Report in 2025, tells Yahoo that 'racial/ethnic and gender diversity has unfailingly remained a key predictor of success at the box office' — but younger moviegoers aren't rushing to the theater as much as they could because they're 'hesitant to see films that do not cater to them.' According to data from the UCLA report, young adult women, particularly those of color, are vital consumers. Studios and filmmakers not tapping into that demographic is leaving money on the table. Barak Epstein, operator of the Texas Theatre in Dallas, tells Yahoo that young people naturally flock to their cinema. They saw a lot of success last year with Sean Baker's buzzy, Oscar-winning Anora, and again this year with a movie called F***toys that hasn't been picked up for distribution yet. Filmmaker Annapurna Sriram is 'going on tour with it like a rock band,' and young people are turning out with enthusiasm, Epstein says. I saw this firsthand at a 4DX screening of A Minecraft Movie. The enthusiasm of Gen Z and Gen Alpha viewers led to theaters creating special "chicken jockey" screenings that featured sanctioned chaos. It was delightful. For Gen Z, moviegoing is a ritual. It's an easy and relatively inexpensive way to access community and celebrate identity. Now they just need other generations to catch on and keep that experience alive. 'Sometimes I'm like, 'How do I find older people?' Epstein laughs. __________________ The Yahoo News survey was conducted by YouGov using a nationally representative sample of 1,560 U.S. adults interviewed online from May 22-27, 2025. The sample was weighted according to gender, age, race, education, 2024 election turnout and presidential vote, party identification and current voter registration status. Demographic weighting targets come from the 2019 American Community Survey. Party identification is weighted to the estimated distribution at the time of the election (31% Democratic, 32% Republican). Respondents were selected from YouGov's opt-in panel to be representative of all U.S. adults. The margin of error is approximately 2.9%. Solve the daily Crossword
NDTV
21-07-2025
- General
- NDTV
Gen Z Stare: All About The Viral Trend That Has Generations Talking
A new trend dubbed the "Gen Z stare" is sparking debate across social media and the workplace. Characterised by a long, blank, expressionless gaze in a variety of social situations, the look has gone viral through videos on TikTok and is being widely discussed - both humorously and seriously - across generations. According to ABC News, the stare is often seen in response to casual greetings or workplace queries, leaving older generations puzzled or even frustrated. Critics often assail the stare, making snap judgments about what it means: boredom, indifference, superiority, judgment or just sheer silliness - even a death stare. "A lot of Gen Z folks are saying, 'Sorry, this is just the way we talk,' while others say this is more specific to customer service," said Brad Mielke, host of ABC 's Start Here podcast. Mielke added that even Gen Z workers are noticing it in their peers. "You even have Gen Z-ers sort of noticing this in each other," he said, calling the moment a rare instance of self-reflection for the hyper-online generation. But others argue it goes beyond facial expression. In an article for Forbes, author Bryan Robinson warns against jumping to conclusions. Robinson said he spoke to Vintage's chief research officer Joe Galvin who told him, "The 'Gen Z stare' is more than just a viral buzzword. Similar to past trends such as 'quiet quitting', it is a pervasive one, highlighting a larger issue in today's workplace: A growing generational disconnect in employee communication and expectations." The stare, Galvin notes, can be misinterpreted as disinterest or defiance, but it may stem from Gen Z's lack of exposure to real-world social interaction - particularly during the pandemic, when screens replaced face-to-face communication. In some cases, experts liken the frozen expression to a trauma "freeze" response, reflecting stress or uncertainty rather than disrespect. As generational differences come under the spotlight, workplace leaders are being urged to rethink how they assess engagement. "Are team members truly disengaged, or are leaders relying on outdated ideas of what attentiveness and participation should look like?" Galvin asked. "Misreading body language can lead to confusion, frustration, and missed opportunities to connect." The trend follows other generational behaviours like the "millennial pause" and baby boomers - those born between 1946 and 1964 - signing texts like letters. As Mielke noted on ABC News, "We've all got them... This is the first time Gen Z is under fire from the rest of the generations." Whether a fleeting fad or a sign of deeper disconnect, the Gen Z stare is forcing a wider conversation on social media about how we read - and misread - each other in the modern workplace.
