'Who has the time to give undivided attention for a phone call?': Gen-Z and millennials debate leaving their phones on 'Do Not Disturb' 24/7

JR Atkinson • Writer and Editor

Feb 18, 2024 8:00 PM EST

I'll admit it. I'm one of those filthy Zoomers who hates to pick up the phone. I don't know why, but something about phone calls just sends my cortisol through the roof and I'd rather avoid it. I'm not a psycho, I pick up for my parents and friends when I can, but I have hardly, if ever, picked up the phone for an unknown caller. And I've never faced any negative consequences from that. More often than not, it's just a scam that I would hang up on anyway. If it turns out to be something pressing, I'll call right back as soon as I hear the voicemail. But I'm not going out of my way to, as they say, "mess around and find out." I have stuff to do, places to go, texts to send.

But there's another layer to this phone call avoidance, and that's the Apple function known as "Do Not Disturb." I'm a big fan, and apparently, others in my generation are too.