More than 9 in 10 U.S. households (93%) had smartphones in 2024, according to the latest census data.

The big picture: Large majorities across demographic groups use smartphones, but habits vary by age, income and education.

• Younger U.S. adults are most likely to own one, finds a 2025 survey by the Pew Research Center.

Zoom out: Some states, including Utah, California and Texas, saw rates closer to 95% — while West Virginia, Vermont and Maine came in around 90% or below.

Zoom in: Both sides of the state line came in just under the national mark, with 92.6% of Kansas households and 92.1% of Missouri households reporting smartphones in 2024, per the American Community Survey.

• For a growing share of households, the phone is the only computer.
• About 12% of Jackson County households and nearly 19% in Wyandotte County had a smartphone but no desktop, laptop or tablet, a common measure of the digital divide.

State of play: With a phone in nearly every home, both states have started regulating where and what we scroll.

• Missouri's bell-to-bell school phone ban took effect this school year, pulling devices out of K-12 classrooms statewide.
• A 2024 Kansas law requires age verification for certain sites with content harmful to minors, and Missouri's then-attorney general filed a first-in-the-nation rule letting users pick their own content moderator, which legal experts question.
• Even governments have limited their devices: Kansas banned TikTok from state-owned tech in 2022, the same month Congress passed a federal device ban authored by Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley.

The bottom line: For now, what's in your feed is on you. Here's how to clean it up, app by app.

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Let's start with TikTok, which has one of the most formidable algorithms, powering one of the most addictive apps of our time.

The big picture: It learns what you linger on — not what you "like" — and feeds you more of it at scale.

• There's no way to fully turn off TikTok's algorithm, but you can blunt its influence on your feed.

1. 🔎 Ditch the "For You" feed: This is where TikTok flexes its algorithmic muscle, serving up videos it thinks will keep you on the app. Instead, explore the "Following" feed, which only shows you TikToks made by creators you've intentionally chosen.
2. 🛑 Prune your algorithm: If you can't escape it, train it. Be ruthless about flagging videos you don't want to see more of — whether that's incendiary personalities or buckets of content, like politics. Press on a video for a bit, and you'll see an option to tap "Not Interested." Use it!
3. 🌱 Seek out the good stuff: Training works both ways. There's a lot of great content on TikTok. Use the search bar to actively look for the videos you do want to see. That could be "Kansas City restaurants" or "World Cup KC."

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Instagram, the visual platform that once revolved around your friends' espresso drinks and vacation photos, now feels packed with influencers you've never met and recommendations you didn't ask for.

Why it matters: Cleaning up your Instagram account redirects you to content from people and posts you actually care about.

Some options:

1. ➡️ Quick fix: Switch to the "Following" feed by clicking the Instagram logo at the top of your screen when you open the app. You'll have to toggle to it each time you open the app, but it'll only show you posts from those you follow — the closest you can get to an algorithm-free feed.
2. 🗑️ Gradual cleanup: Start tapping the "…" and hitting "Not Interested" whenever you see a garbage post, whether it's fake news, rage bait or influencers.

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Facebook has shaped political discourse, family dynamics and entire news cycles for years.

• Its algorithm reflects years of your clicks, relationships and habits, so your feed may be showing you a version of the world built from your past.

Why it matters: Facebook doesn't have to be a pit of despair and rage bait. You can reset it.

It's never too late to start:

1. Snooze and unfollow: Facebook allows you to hide people you follow or "Snooze" their content. (Tap the "..." next to a post you don't enjoy and you'll find some options to hide that post, snooze the poster, hide all content from that user or unfollow them altogether.)
2. 🚦 Adjust your preferences: Over the political content? You can dial it back. Go to "Settings & privacy," then "Content preferences," where you can reduce the amount of political and sensitive content in your feed.

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YouTube is now flooded with engagement bait and AI-generated content — often recycled, repackaged and optimized for clicks.

Why it matters: The more you watch passively, the more the platform assumes you want the same. If you want better recommendations, you have to interrupt the cycle.

Here's how to clean up your feed:

1. 🚫 Remove, remove, remove: This is YouTube's simplest fix. Click the three dots next to a video and select "Not interested" or "Don't recommend channel." Over time, this trains the algorithm away from content you don't want.
2. ⏸️ Hit pause: You can pause your watch history to prevent your algorithm from recommending anything tied to your past viewings. (Go to "Settings," then "Manage all history," then "Controls." From there, turn off "Include the YouTube videos you watch.")

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