It’s a question that all parents must ponder with the advent of technology: when to let kids have access to smartphones or tablets—if at all. As far as Sharon Osbourne is concerned, iPhones and iPads are the worst things to happen to the next generation, with the mother of three calling it “insanity.”
Together with Black Sabbath icon Ozzy Osbourne, television personality Sharon Osbourne has three children: Aimee, 40, Kelly, 39, and Jack, 38; Ozzy also has two children of his own from a previous relationship. While Kelly and Jack feature prominently with their mother and father on the reality TV show The Osbournes, Aimee kept out of that particular spotlight. But there’s a personal spotlight that tech like smartphones creates that Sharon thinks everyone should stay away from when they’re young.
Sharon Osbourne slams iPhones and iPads as dangerous tech for kids
Sharon, along with Kelly and Jack, recently spoke with PEOPLE about The Osbourns Podcast and Osbourne Media House, a “multimedia hub for everything Osbourne” that acts as a hub for the original series, podcasts, merchandise, family updates, and more. Decades in the spotlight have made the Osbournes familiar not just with constant scrutiny but with plenty of negativity, especially on social media.
RELATED: Sharon Osbourne Is Feeling Grateful In Rare Photo With All 5 Grandchildren
“The worst thing that can happen to a child is an iPad and an iPhone,” argued Sharon. After Jack agreed, Sharon reiterated, “The worst,” adding, “I think it’s insane that young kids can have their own accounts and put stuff into the universe. I think it’s insanity.”
Walking a difficult line
Sharon disapproves of social media and calls tech like smartphones the worst for kids, but se has not ruled out bringing the net generation into a reality TV show with the rest of the family. Jack and his ex-wife share children Pearl Clementine, Andy Rose, and Minnie Theodora; Jack also has daughter Maple Artemis, who was born in 2022. Sharon is also the grandmother to baby Sidney, who Kelly just had in 2022 as well.
“You should never say never, but I don’t really think about it,” Sharon explained when asked if the grandkids would ever appear on an Osbourne-centric TV show. “It’s not something I go, ‘Oh God, I’ve got to get back into the world of reality, and I want to do this and I want to do that.’ I just don’t even think about it. And like I say, you never say never, but they better do it quick before I croak.”
Indeed, Osbourne has said she’s glad The Osbournes stopped before social media took off in earnest. When asked if there was anything she regretted during the show’s run in the early 2000s, Sharon shared, “No, and I’m really lucky for my kids that we stopped it when we stopped it. It was getting too much. I’m glad we stopped it before social media became what it was because people can be so cruel.”
“The press were bad enough, but I can imagine peer groups of theirs online and what they would have said and done,” she added.
What do you think of the smartphone and social media debate?
