A neat digest from xkcd of worries about the pace of modern life here, including the following from 1907:
Our modern family gathering, silent around the fire, each individual with his head buried in his favourite magazine, is the somewhat natural outcome of the banishment of colloquy from the school.
Meanwhile, one hundred and four years later,
…when parents do view programmes with their children, only 15% use them to start a conversation. A fifth say they sit in silence with their children.
(Data from the ‘Hello Campaign’ reported here.)