The attention economy and its effects on teen civic engagement

For the first time in 53 years, the New York Knicks are NBA champions. 

With the post-season coming to an end, the 2026 NBA Finals were special in many ways, not the least of which was Game 3. Not only was the game the sole loss for New York in the Series, but it was also a record-breaking game, not on the court but in the stands.

President Trump’s appearance at Game 3 of the NBA Finals marks the 5th major sporting event attended by the President, breaking his own record for major sporting events attended by a sitting President. 

If you were tuned in (or disrupted) by the commentary from New York basketball fans during the finals, you saw that they had a lot to say about the President’s appearance at the game. Whether it was calling it bad luck or an inconvenience to fans who have waited to witness a finals game on their home turf since 1999, it was no secret that many fans saw it as, dare I say, an invasion of their safe space.

As I listened to the debates and commentaries of ESPN and TNT going through my morning routine, it made me think about the larger implications of living in the attention economy, and the effects of the popular imagination’s view of civic engagement in what news host Chris Hayes coins in his book The Sirens’ Call as a “war for attention” in the current political landscape. 

With political figures constantly grasping for the attention of the public, either to redirect headlines or advance an argument, it’s hard to think of digital spaces where you can genuinely disengage with the political conversations of the time. 

I bring this up because most of our most of are time is on screens, whether it’s after a hard day of work or a long day of classes. With this being the case for most teens and young adults, it calls into question whether we ever actually really get the chance to relax at all in our spaces of leisure, or are we constantly caught in the “war of attention” and walk across battlefields. 

To answer that question, I had the opportunity to interview Aikin New Tech High School junior Queen Mugeni alongside her teacher, Mr. Aaron Parker, to further understand the teenage perspective on civic engagement in the age of attention. For more, listen to the Episode!