Keep your joey off social media, mate! That’s what we imagine the Australian government said on Thursday after it approved a law banning children and teenagers under 16 years old from using social media.
While Australia is not the first country to implement such a ban, it is the strictest in the world so far. Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said that the ban would include Snapchat, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and X. Chat and gaming platforms are, however, exempt from the ban, as are sites where kids don’t need accounts to access, like YouTube.
Social media companies could be fined up to $49.5m (R582.4m) if they don’t prevent minors from logging in.
But why is Australia banning social media for kids? Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that there were significant mental and physical health risks to kids using social media. Albanese said that the ban was to curb excessive social media use for kids, in particular, the risks to girls from harmful depictions of body image and misogynist content aimed at boys.
Local reactions have been mixed. For example, one Sydney resident, Francesca Sambas, welcomed the ban, saying it would stop kids from seeing things they shouldn’t. “I think that’s a great idea because I found that social media for kids [is] not really appropriate,” said Sambas. Others, like 58-year-old Shon Klose, see this as censorship. “I feel that this government has taken democracy and thrown it out the window. How could they possibly make up these rules and these laws and push it upon the people?” asked Klose.
The kids? They’re figuring out ways to bypass the restrictions. But they don’t have to resort to becoming criminal masterminds just yet: The law won’t be in effect for at least a year.
Social media companies have bemoaned the actions, saying this would lead kids to seedier parts of the internet.
Experts are also worried that there wasn’t proper public engagement on the law. Associate Professor of Communication at Murdoch University, Tauel Harper, said while there are merits to the ban, implementation might not be simple. “The government’s social media ban for children under 16 is defensible based upon the toxic nature of the social media platforms being banned. There are certainly going to be problems with implementing the ban effectively, and it is concerning that the government seems to be ramming the legislation through without proper community feedback. There are real concerns about the effectiveness of this move,” said Harper.
Countries like France, Germany, Belgium, and Italy have some rules regarding children and social media, but Australia’s remains the strictest.
Could a rule like that work in South Africa? Let us know what you think!