Australia’s Social Media Ban Plan Raises Alarms Over Teen Isolation

Australia’s new social media ban plan for children and teenagers raises concerns regarding possible isolation and lack of communication among young users.

According to a recent report by Reuters, experts consider that the ban could negatively impact the young population.

“The ban is pretty much the opposite of what we would recommend,” said Amelia Johns, an associate professor of digital media at the University of Technology, Sydney. “Everyone is living in social media. For a lot of young people, it’s not an option to opt out, and I do wonder about the mental health consequences of a complete blanket ban.”

The Australian government announced the introduction of a new age requirement for social media use last month—the age limit hasn’t been officially announced yet, but it’s expected to be between 14 and 16 years old—as safety and development concerns increased.

The regulation is a measure to cut the addictive nature when using the algorithms and its consequences in physical and mental health, privacy risks, access to inappropriate content—like hate speech, violence, and more—, predator’s grooming, and general well-being. However, it has faced criticism and rejection.

Reuters interviewed teenagers in Australia—according to a recent survey 97% of teenagers in this country use social media channels—and revealed that a certain part of this population, especially minorities, are at risk.

“I have a really hard time connecting to others,” said Ben Kioko, a 14-year-old Australian teenager interviewed, who considers himself autistic and part of the LGBTQIA+ community. “Doing that online makes it a lot easier.” Another teenager, a refugee in Darwing, said she uses social media to talk to her family abroad and worries about losing communication with them.

The Australian government expects to have a new legislation ready by the end of the year.

Australia’s government announced last month it plans to ban younger teenagers from using social media. But many young Australians say the proposed age-based ban would isolate them further. More here: https://t.co/GwbM30sSYj pic.twitter.com/mdFYBbOqEN

— Reuters Tech News (@ReutersTech) October 16, 2024