My country, Australia, passed a bill November last year which plans to ban 'social media' for everyone under 16. My say about this is below, please take the time to read it all if you can.
If it isn't apparent I am 100% against this ban. I am under 16. And when I first heard about this, I thought, what platforms ARE going to be banned?
Well, the government hasn't put out a list of every platform facing the ban on December 10, but has a list of criteria that if a platform meets it, they might be facing the ban. Named platforms include Tiktok, Insta, Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat, Reddit and YOUTUBE. You heard me right. They are going to ban YOUTUBE for minors, a platform which isn't really a social media platform, rather a streaming service. That's like banning Netflix. And the flimsiness of their definition of 'social media' and their laziness to not name every platform facing the ban means that no one knows if Tumblr, Bluesky, or Discord are going to be affected.
The next question me and many others have is how they are going to enforce it. That is also something that we don't know for certain. Many news articles I read discussed 'facial age estimation' software which determines your age based on your facial features. However, trials conducted have only had an 85% accuracy rate for determining a person's age within an 18 month range. Many testers reported being underestimated in one test, then overestimated in another. This could present problems if someone over 16 is flagged to be under 16 just because they have a bit of a baby face. They most likely have other methods being tested but I am unsure of those. I just hope that it doesn't come down to having to submit government IDs or bank cards or stuff like that. It's just throwing people's privacy out of the window!
Now, for my personal take on the issue. Social media can be bad. I will not deny that. Cyberbullying, toxic beauty standards, phone addiction, they all mainly come from social media. However, there are also many positives for certain groups (particularly LGBTQIA+ youth), which the government won't acknowledge. For a lack of better words, I live in a dingy, bogan city. There is literally nothing interesting here 😵💫. Before I got pulled out of public school there was not a single person in that school, I bet, who would have gotten along with me well. I am autistic, I am awkward, I like niche things like visual novels and 'weird' bands. Due to social media being worldwide it would be so much easier to find someone who I click with. Hell, I have already found a small group of people, who even though I have only known them for a very short time, I have felt more like I belong with them compared to any friend I have made in person.
If social media was banned, and it included Tumblr and Discord, I would lose the ability to talk with these people, and anyone else I wanted to be friends with. I am already so lonely it hurts and that would just make me even more despondent. Queer youth are going to lose the ability to talk with their friends and peers who might be more supportive than their IRL ones. Rural youth will lose the ability to talk with their friends who may live hours away.
Education about the risks of social media and how to combat them is the solution to the issues surrounding it. Teaching kids how to report unsafe content, stand up against bullies, recognise if something is a filter or AI enhancement. Especially in this day and age where everything is online, we need to equip young Gen Zs, Alphas, Betas and everyone after them with skills for using online platforms safely. It is like if they tried to ban alcohol because it is unsafe. Yes, it is certainly not good, and there are certain ways of using it that are banned (ie drink driving, public drunkenness), but instead of banning the substance all together we teach youth the risks of drinking in school, run workshops and ad campaigns for it, etc. Why? Because people drink for fun!
So, please, even if you are not from Australia, try to protest in any way you can. I signed this petition which started on July 30th, and already has 127 signatures as of August 3rd.
Allow Teenagers in Australia to Access Social Media
Of course, you can sign any other ones as well. Write posts about it like I did. Share this post. Get people from all around the world to help. Pressure politicians to change their mind. Your voice matters. The voices of young people in Australia matter.