My problem with social media bans is that it completely gives up on the idea that we can meaningfully force social media platforms to get better - the Australian model, where the fining goes to the companies that are allowing children on the site, is better than the UK legislation that's coming up which would punish families, but even so
I'm in Australia and a parent and I have no confidence this will do anything. Its political grandstanding to make it seem like something is being done but as you've so well said there are so many issues with it.
Verification of identity or age has been tried in other countries on a variety of platforms and all have failed. Which was mentioned in the reports ahead of this law being changed but has essentially been hand waved off.
Social media companies have consistently shown they don't really care about the effects on people whether they be adults or children so the Australian government believing this will make a difference is a complete head in the sand action.
I don't know what the solution is other than parents doing their absolute best to ensure their kids are equipped to deal with these scenarios as well as possible. Which of course isn't ideal and wont be easy, as it wasn't for our parents when we were kids and faced different challenges to our parents generation.
I agree with the sentiment of your argument. Something must be done. But it's easy for policymakers to bring in such a prohibition. A more effective solution is more nuanced (and this highlights the issue with policymakers making 'rules and regulations' about things they don't really understand). The UK's Online Safety Act is a much better way as legislators asked Ofcom (a regulator with the necessary expertise) to implement and enforce the law. But - with 2025 being an election year in Australia - why let sensible policymaking get in the way of a good headline! I wrote about this a few months ago. https://nickstringer.substack.com/p/banning-social-media-for-under-16s
My kid’s school (roughly Patrick’s oldest’s age) uses Google Slides for class assignments, and the kids discovered they can use it as a messaging service since it’s shared across the class Chromebooks. Just wild. Life finds a way…which has me pessimistic about these bans in practice. But making it harder for the worst social media rot (and holding companies accountable) is still a worthwhile goal, even if I’m skeptical it’ll be perfect.
But its not about being able to communicate with pie via slides or such. It's about TikTok's brainrot or Instagram's depression inducing "ideal world".
My problem with social media bans is that it completely gives up on the idea that we can meaningfully force social media platforms to get better - the Australian model, where the fining goes to the companies that are allowing children on the site, is better than the UK legislation that's coming up which would punish families, but even so
I'm in Australia and a parent and I have no confidence this will do anything. Its political grandstanding to make it seem like something is being done but as you've so well said there are so many issues with it.
Verification of identity or age has been tried in other countries on a variety of platforms and all have failed. Which was mentioned in the reports ahead of this law being changed but has essentially been hand waved off.
Social media companies have consistently shown they don't really care about the effects on people whether they be adults or children so the Australian government believing this will make a difference is a complete head in the sand action.
I don't know what the solution is other than parents doing their absolute best to ensure their kids are equipped to deal with these scenarios as well as possible. Which of course isn't ideal and wont be easy, as it wasn't for our parents when we were kids and faced different challenges to our parents generation.
I agree with the sentiment of your argument. Something must be done. But it's easy for policymakers to bring in such a prohibition. A more effective solution is more nuanced (and this highlights the issue with policymakers making 'rules and regulations' about things they don't really understand). The UK's Online Safety Act is a much better way as legislators asked Ofcom (a regulator with the necessary expertise) to implement and enforce the law. But - with 2025 being an election year in Australia - why let sensible policymaking get in the way of a good headline! I wrote about this a few months ago. https://nickstringer.substack.com/p/banning-social-media-for-under-16s
My kid’s school (roughly Patrick’s oldest’s age) uses Google Slides for class assignments, and the kids discovered they can use it as a messaging service since it’s shared across the class Chromebooks. Just wild. Life finds a way…which has me pessimistic about these bans in practice. But making it harder for the worst social media rot (and holding companies accountable) is still a worthwhile goal, even if I’m skeptical it’ll be perfect.
But its not about being able to communicate with pie via slides or such. It's about TikTok's brainrot or Instagram's depression inducing "ideal world".
Completely agree, I just like to point to it as a stark example of “kids will find a way around simple blocks, every time”.