Deep Questions with Cal Newport
Deep Questions with Cal Newport

Should I Turn Off the Internet? (Lessons From a Family That Did) | Monday Advice

July 6, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

The Man Who Turned Off the Internet (and What He Learned)

Chris Moody, a former CNN senior correspondent, lives in a log cabin 15 minutes outside Boone, North Carolina, with no cell reception and no internet. His only connection to the outside world is a landline phone. He and his wife made this choice three years ago, when their son was just a few months old, and they have not gone back. "It's the greatest decision I've ever made," Moody says. The conversation with Cal Newport explores what that life actually looks like, how they got there, and what lessons the rest of us can extract without necessarily throwing our routers into the sea.

How They Got There

Moody's path to the cabin was not a sudden impulse. He was a senior correspondent for CNN politics, living in Washington and New York, where work was "my life, it was my religion, it was everything." He and his wife began experimenting with small rebellions—putting their phones in a basket between 6 and 8 PM, calling it "cabining," pretending they were off the grid for just two hours. "It felt so rebellious to be alone together without any chance of anyone reaching us," Moody says.

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What you'll learn

  • 1 (00:00) **Introduction: The Allure of 1990s Mode** - Cal introduces Chris Moody, a former CNN correspondent who now lives in a cabin with no internet or cell service, and sets up the central question: what can the rest of us learn from his extreme experiment in intentional living?
  • 2 (03:25) **The Setup: Cabin Life Without the Internet** - Chris describes his current home: a log cabin in the mountains with no internet or cell service, only a landline.
  • 3 (06:21) **Backstory: From CNN to the Cargo Van** - Chris recounts his former life as a senior political correspondent in DC and NYC, where work was his identity and constant connectivity was the norm.
  • 4 (15:52) **Life in the Van: Lessons in Simplicity** - Chris describes a typical day in the van: reading, hiking, writing, and living with very limited power and space.
  • 5 (20:00) **Key Insights from the Van: Time, Consumption, and Perspective** - Chris shares the epiphanies gained from living simply: time expands without distraction, and returning to society made advertising and constant consumption seem absurd.
  • 6 (24:23) **The Move to Boone: A Lucky Accident** - Chris explains how they ended up in Boone: a teaching position opened up at Appalachian State, and the need for stability with a baby on the way made the move appealing.
  • 7 (30:30) **The Reality of Work Without Home Internet** - Chris details how he manages his professional life without home internet, including setting clear expectations with his department chair and editors.

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Guests on this episode

Cal Newport

Show Notes

It’s a dream a lot of us have: to finally say “enough!”, and turn off the internet inside our homes, returning us to a lifestyle that requires more presence, introspection, and connection. But is this even possible? And what would it really be like? In this episode, Cal seeks answers to these questions by talking to Chris Moody, a journalism professor at Appalachian State, who lives with his wife and young son in a cabin with no internet, television, or cellular signal. 

 

Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: https://bit.ly/3U3sTvo

 

Video from today’s episode:  youtube.com/calnewportmedia

 

(0:00) Should I turn off the internet?

(3:28) Interview with Chris Moody

(1:02:58) Cal’s closing remarks

 

Links:

Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at www.calnewport.com/slow

Get a signed copy of Cal’s “Slow Productivity” at https://peoplesbooktakoma.com/event/cal-newport/

Cal’s monthly book directory: bramses.notion.site/059db2641def4a88988b4d2cee4657ba?

 

Thanks to our Sponsors:

 

This show is sponsored by Better Help:

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Thanks to Jesse Miller for production and mastering, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Nate Mechler for research and newsletter.

 

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