The Australian government is set to introduce “world-leading” legislation in the parliament this month restricting children under 16 years old from accessing social media.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese started his speech by saying, ” This is for the mums and dads. Social media is doing harm to our kids, and I’m calling time on it.”
He said that the proposed law regarding social media age restriction aims to mitigate the harm social media causes to Australian children.
Communications Minister Michelle Rowland clarified that there would be no penalties for under-16 users who manage to access social media and their parents, and it would be up to the eSafety Commissioner to enforce the law.
However, the penalties would fall on social media platforms that do not follow the regulation, potentially impacting big tech companies, including Meta’s Facebook and Instagram, Bytedance’s TikTok, Alphabet’s YouTube, and Elon Musk’s X (Twitter).
The topic of social media regulations also sparked debates on the proper way of tackling the potential harm of social media to children’s mental health.
Some experts say social media use poses a real danger, but banning it only delays young people’s exposure to popular apps like Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.
Instead, to protect young people from harm, the focus should be on teaching them digital literacy and navigating these complex online spaces.
Other countries have also attempted some form of social media restrictions, such as requiring parental consent for certain ages and limiting their allowable access time to these apps.
Do you think these social media regulations will ever be passed in the Philippines? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Source: The Canberra Times