AT&T Recommends Thanksgiving Cell Phone Etiquette

A modern family doesn’t need cell phones at the Thanksgiving table.

Each Thanksgiving you expect cranberry sauce, a few extra pounds and maybe some gentle teasing from your distant cousin. But blaring cell phone rings? Camera flashes? The clatter of teens sending rapid-fire texts? Unfortunately these are some new habits that have now encroached on the traditional Thanksgiving day festivities.

To help keep harmony when your family gathers next week, AT&T has created a few tips that will ensure a peaceful and stress-free Thanksgiving without the interference of overwhelming cell phone usage.  Here are AT&T’s Top Five Tips on cell phone etiquette at Thanksgiving:

1. Silence is golden – All cell phones should be on silent or vibrate mode on Thanksgiving day
2. Create a cell-phone free zone – Family can text, talk, surf online, and check Facebook as much as they want during the football game and kitchen prep, but not at the Thanksgiving table
3. No paparazzi – Take photos of family before or after the meal, but don’t whip out your camera phone during dinner
4. Take personal conversations outside (or in a different room) – If you must take or make a call on Thanksgiving day, step outside or into another room, so that others aren’t forced to overhear your call
5. Take a break between courses –if people need to check their phones build in breaks between the meal and dessert when everyone is stretching their legs anyway