I haven't read a whole book in 7 years.
There's something I heard Maryanne Wolf on one of my favorite podcasts (Brain Science with Ginger Campbell Ep. 145) which impacted me and got me to start reading as often as I could:
"Spend, at least, 10-15 minutes reading print [daily]. [Whatever] will make you think. Think at the beginning of the day and think at the end of the day. (...)
Because we have all begun to move so fast that we are retreating from the slower processes that lead us to be more thoughtful human beings".
She connects the action of reading to other brain functions that are correlated to empathy and deep thought and I think her points make a lot of sense logically and also based on my own experience with people around me and myself.
I think that, similar to exercise, learning to subject oneself to something linear that gets uncomfortable real quick and require endurance is what can lead to our concentration (and by extension patience and introspection) muscles to be strengthened.
I'm not sure how much has the faculty of 'attention' been impacted by the social media revolution in comparison to the impact on the 'will' of humans. People still seem to be focused on things at stretch for hours (eg movies, smartphones) but not on the things that they want to focus on (eg work, studies). It's almost like, they're being 'made' to focus on the things which the companies want them to focus on (through subtle mind control and marketing).
At almost all times in human history, the free will of humans has been influenced and controlled by the culture, however, marketing, social media, and other clandestine techniques have further taken hold of our free will and hence attention. On the positive side, most humans have freed themselves from the clutches of the traditional modes of control such as - various superstitions and irrational rituals.
I would say that nature follows the path of least resistance (I think free will is kind of an illusion we believe in too much but that's for a whole other conversation).
What I've experienced actually seems to differ from what you said. Less and less people are subjecting themselves to the 2-hr film experience, preferring to jump from film to film on Netflix or other streaming services. People can't be at the theater without switching to their phones on the lowest brightness settings for a couple of seconds to check social media. Most people I know listen to about 30 seconds of songs they like before switching to the next song. Tons of people are still superstitious. I live in a developed metropolis and there are still as many psychic shops as there are adult video stores. Some of the more viral videos on Youtube have thumbnails with red arrows pointing at blurry figures. And this may be reckless to say, but the infamous cancel culture and the general attitude towards political correctness is just the modern version of witch hunting and scarlet lettering, a more subtle version of superstition.
We instinctively view it as us being affected by a greater force. But I think the act of being present and mindful has never been a natural human ability. We gravitate towards what's easier, faster, and most stimulating.
Ages ago, the complaint from the most thoughtful likely was "If it weren't for those stupid pubs, men would be more caring. They'd spend time with their families instead of starting fights and getting drunk". "Everyone now can't go to the beach without having to take a book with them. It's like no one can sit still sober and just think or pray. Always have to be hooked to the latest journal. So sad"
Don't get me wrong though. Not trying to contradict what you said. The increase in technology and social media's presence have definitely worsened us. We're not monitoring our impulses, just trying to band-aid their symptoms with more conveniences. But I think this is an inevitable phase humans have to go through. I just hope the next phase doesn't mean extinction.
TL;DR
Nature takes the path of least resistance and technology creates that path, for better or worse.
