Australia set a social media ban for users under 16 this week, but @maryannefranks.bsky.social says enforcing it will be a challenge and risk user privacy. Social media is “asbestos with better PR and a bigger checkbook,” says Roger McNamee (@moonalice.com). “The status quo is intolerable.” #Velshi - ThreadSky

velshi.bsky.social • 89 days ago

Australia set a social media ban for users under 16 this week, but @maryannefranks.bsky.social says enforcing it will be a challenge and risk user privacy. Social media is “asbestos with better PR and a bigger checkbook,” says Roger McNamee (@moonalice.com). “The status quo is intolerable.” #Velshi

Comments

chiefs-49ers.bsky.social•89 days ago

by risking user privacy they mean more people will have their identities and money stolen

krasnostein.bsky.social•89 days ago

Loved this discussion. I thought it striking that everyone agreed something needs to be done. It’s interesting that we (Aus) have gone for imperfect over inaction. Maybe it doesn’t work. Maybe we tweak it.

kelpel.bsky.social•89 days ago

But at least we try.

katmarie.bsky.social•89 days ago

It’s better than doing nothing ,which is what is happening in N. America. I am rooting for Australia.

xroxip.bsky.social•89 days ago

Yes, it's at least bringing the topic into public discourse. There should be a law forcing the operating systems producers to include versatile parental controls functionality. Nowadays parents are doing Sisyphus work trying to protect their children and they often give up sooner than they should.

davidnavaya.bsky.social•89 days ago

Exactly!

dinolamour.bsky.social•89 days ago

Just a stupid headline grabbing stunt by a disingenuous government looking to court the extreme right in a near future election. It will disappear quickly and social media giants will quash it in the courts like swatting a bug. Just a stupid idea from a government without ideas.

marie-atl.bsky.social•89 days ago

The problem is the safety/privacy cycle:
Tech co gets content/privacy complaints > tech co issues how-to-stay-safe/private statement > users follow those instructions > tech co undermines those instructions w/backdoor code/staff changes > users discover the same content/privacy.
Wash. Rinse. Repeat

jkcreative8.bsky.social•89 days ago

In the US, we live in hell. Curated by tech bros.

shariz.bsky.social•89 days ago

Last I checked, social media doesn’t give you incurable cancer

ikkytito.bsky.social•89 days ago

What is the penalty for under 16yr olds using facebook?

johhnym.bsky.social•89 days ago

Do love the irony that you can be jailed at 10, but Facebook is out for another 6 years!

skhaira.bsky.social•89 days ago

When has telling someone they can’t do something ever stopped them smh. Worse problems In the world

ivanaraque.bsky.social•89 days ago

The experience overwhelmingly supports the Aussies…

jackdawg52.bsky.social•89 days ago

yeah, I think this one will go straight to our high court.

papaman50.bsky.social•89 days ago

Please read the "Anxious Generation."

rafaelcepedalopes.bsky.social•89 days ago

Asbestos with better PR 😂😂😂😂 couldn't have said it better

weezbo.bsky.social•88 days ago

Do you suffer from meta-xitter-insta-TikTok-ia? You may be entitled to
financial compensation.

delevenz.bsky.social•89 days ago

You'd think we learned our lesson 20+ years ago when age verification measures were bypassed by *checks notes* "the human capacity to lie" and therefore completely sidestep such trivial attempts.

Only a good education can prevent misuse of any given tool. Bans only create juicy forbidden fruit.

laurapotter.bsky.social•89 days ago

But at least if they’re told is bad they have no one else to blame when parents come crying about what their child saw online as they think everything is made for their children instead of monitoring them online

5050ball.bsky.social•89 days ago

At least Australia is trying…then the world can learn from them how to do it

3k0bolds.bsky.social•88 days ago

Or, you know, parents could actually do their jobs and PARENT THEIR KIDS.

JFC. Nanny state.

khanindustries.bsky.social•89 days ago

What are we going to ban next in the name saving the kids? Video games?

This ban feels feels wrong, backward, authoritarian, and doesn't belong in the Western World in my humble opinion.

It feels like something China or Christian Fascists would do honestly.

cloudynetwork.bsky.social•89 days ago

Kids will bypass it. This frees the Social Media corps from having to do anything to keep under 16s safe. Kids will not seek help or go to even worst places on the net. This is performative nonsense.

dewoker.bsky.social•89 days ago

Doomed to fail

bsbusters.bsky.social•89 days ago

This strongly encroaches on parental authority and discretion, and is probably a test balloon, to see how well social media can be restricted from all, when desired.

theoriginalpb.bsky.social•89 days ago

This conversation is far overdue. A lot of people either have their rose tinted glasses on or yearn for the innocence of the early iterations of social media. Today's social media is a cesspool of attention seeking individuals and propagandist corporations. Children do not need that in their lives.

catsbetterthanmen.bsky.social•89 days ago

Exactly. What we HAVE isn't working. However flawed this proposal may be, it is better than what we have, which is Big Tech profiting off misery that they platform. The folks attacking the ban are mostly those who will now have to spend money to actually POLICE their freaking platforms.

katmarie.bsky.social•89 days ago

We did not vote these big tech giants into office, yet, here we are. And the only body that can keep them in check, is governments.

laurapotter.bsky.social•89 days ago

Good good , I’m tired of having to childsafe the internet because “a child may see it” just cos parents won’t monitor their kids online

kyleruggles.bsky.social•89 days ago

jchokonen.bsky.social•89 days ago

don't mention asbestos to Australians, ever

panicatthedogpark.bsky.social•86 days ago

That’s good, but there’s already hardware out there that does the same thing, no enforcement required. Pressure hardware makers to provide children’s versions of popular devices. They make $, children are safer, children spend less time on screens—EVERYBODY WINS.

jared-1371.bsky.social•89 days ago

So when are we banning Fox News for its adverse impacts on the elderly and the poorly educated?

xroxip.bsky.social•89 days ago

On the same day we are banning all other propaganda cable news. Likely never.

cloudynetwork.bsky.social•89 days ago

When Murdoch gets a soul?

ottawajames.bsky.social•89 days ago

Sincerely hope Australia can succeed

coune.bsky.social•89 days ago

Social media without KYC is doomed. In my opinion. #deadinternettheory

dallasdiva54.bsky.social•89 days ago

I think that's a good idea. It will cut down on teen bullying on social media

liisalee.bsky.social•88 days ago

“And next we’ll ban dancing, bob haircuts, and that evil rock n roll. We know what’s best!” ☠️

updated-my-journal.bsky.social•88 days ago

mtasova.bsky.social•89 days ago

Good thing! Learn kids first reading real life, trust first there own intelligence before expose to alternative truth of Suckerberg’s platforms or TikTok!
There chance of becoming a happy and better person. will rise dramatically!

ajboelen.bsky.social•88 days ago

Forbidding it is a stupid thing to do.
Learn children (and adolescents and grownups for that matter) how to use these new tools of social interaction. Prepare them for a world where communication is not restricted by area, religion, politics or whatever boundaries old fashioned communication has.

diane0905.bsky.social•89 days ago

Exactly what I thought upon hearing this. How will they enforce it?

v0yag3r.bsky.social•89 days ago

Same way i had to recaim my social media accts that were taken over; upload my ID.

emma5155.bsky.social•89 days ago

I don’t see how this is enforceable or poiceble at all but they may have their ways lol
With throwaway emails vpn and no identity checks ? even with an identity check , say friend opened an account for you in their name, these things are easily changed on most platforms ?

v0yag3r.bsky.social•89 days ago

Word is, asbestos is being replaced by 'safer' asbestos.
We had once a pr campaign about 'ethical oil'.
Hello new boss, same as the old boss.
This is why we cant trust industry to 'regulate themselves'.

coolhipgranny555.bsky.social•89 days ago

Kinda like "clean coal."

laurazebra420.bsky.social•89 days ago

“Social media is asbestos” sounds like someone who is afraid of people organizing via social media. Trying to make us fear our greatest tool for change is devious behavior.

rennie02.bsky.social•89 days ago

Meanwhile, in 1850ish Lord Shaftesbury launched the Boys Own paper to counter the threat to moral wellbeing of the spread of comics. That went well.

elevendr.bsky.social•89 days ago

As long as it doesn't involve an verification requiring all people to scan there ID to enter, I'm all for it.

fellatesheohhhh.bsky.social•88 days ago

It will be Impossible to enforce it!

hyrosen.bsky.social•89 days ago

The children of Australia need to go on strike - no going to school, no reading books, no doing chores - until this law is rescinded.

xroxip.bsky.social•89 days ago

Why? Should they also go on strike because they are not allowed to buy alcohol or drugs? Social media is a dangerous drug, heavily impacting children's mental health.

hyrosen.bsky.social•89 days ago

Meh. This is the usual moral panic nonsense. There's nothing wrong with social media.

xroxip.bsky.social•89 days ago

Well, it's your opinion. Millions of parents all over the world, and now also teenagers and young adults are noticing the mental health epidemic. It's not about morals, but about healthy upbringing. Jonathan Haidt wrote an excellent, well documented book about it: https://jonathanhaidt.com/anxious-generation/

tokeiito.bsky.social•89 days ago

Like prohibition ever worked. Another example of prohibit instead of teach.

wolfred666.bsky.social•89 days ago

Oh and one more thing: bullies and terrorists are out in the open and using their real names on social media. Only the victims of bullying will be affected by this. If they can’t tell the world with social media then who will they tell? Parents, priests, and police who don’t always listen?

wolfred666.bsky.social•89 days ago

Yet another example of why the media and its pundits are incompetent. Remember what happened last time we tried prohibition? You can’t legislate parents out of their negligence and stupidity. Tell these parents to do their damn jobs.

d-a-d.bsky.social•89 days ago

But please refrain from any comments about helicopter parents.

And in a world, where a) single or both parents have to work and b) in 2 or 3 jobs if necessary it becomes quite a task to monitor the offspring's online behaviour.

wolfred666.bsky.social•89 days ago

Then we can use a compromise: us adults keep our privacy and free speech online, and parents don’t give their kids a phone or other device that they can’t lockdown. Why does a 12 year old need a phone? And why give the party of book bans the ability to censor free speech? How will that end well?

d-a-d.bsky.social•89 days ago

Actually, a phone is quite useful for busy parents to stay in touch with their kids (remember working in many jobs for example?).

And I really can't see a problem with an age verification unless being paranoid. Not every nation wants to collect data to lock you up.

laurapotter.bsky.social•89 days ago

When I was a kid I had a phone that texted and made calls not a phone that allowed you to watch porn on it

d-a-d.bsky.social•89 days ago

Not to be misunderstood: smartphones and tables can be useful tools aiding education.

Tik Tok, Instagram and the lot are - in their current form - nothing of value for kids.

wolfred666.bsky.social•89 days ago

I’m in Murica, and the party of book bans just won office and will be sworn in January. If you think it’s “paranoia”, you haven’t been paying attention. Lookup Project 2025 and the people behind it. Look up book bans in Republican states and censorship against queers and POC.

d-a-d.bsky.social•89 days ago

You have valid points there.

On the other hand, the same party will extend the campagnes to indoctrinate children and adolescents via social media, don't you think?

wolfred666.bsky.social•89 days ago

Some of these people think Hitler is a role model. And they will hold the hugest offices next year.

laurapotter.bsky.social•89 days ago

There’s no universe where a 12 year old needs an iPad or phone with internet , no matter what anybody says

laurajtreetalker.bsky.social•89 days ago

I wondered how they would enforce it, too.

gallau.bsky.social•89 days ago

They were discussing this point on the news yesterday and the social media companies need to propose how they were going to accomplish age verification without using government issued identification. It does not come into force for another 12 months.

laurajtreetalker.bsky.social•89 days ago

Ah. Well, maybe they'll figure it out by then. Government ID would be a no-no.

ottovonrizzmark.bsky.social•88 days ago

Man, asbestos is way less dangerous than social media.

carolannesundahl.bsky.social•89 days ago

Humans survived and thrived without social media for millennia. "the first social media site was https://SixDegrees.com, which launched in 1997." How have we let it dominate so many lives? This is nothing for children.

mattrocity.bsky.social•89 days ago

Oof. Not that we're a shining example or anything, but the US tried banning a depressant people got/get addicted to early last century. It only cemented it into our cultural identity and created routes for criminal enterprise. I hope Australia has better luck.

originz.bsky.social•88 days ago

It's naive to think any problem can be resolved by cutting off access. It's how drugs and drug dealers became such a never ending issue, a black hole of money that governments probably suck up.
It'll be the same here, only now children will be the target

xroxip.bsky.social•89 days ago

The social media ban for users under 16 sounds great on the surface, but will be useless in practice. It will be impossible to enforce and social media is only part of the problem (first we would have to define what social media are). The internet connection in children's pockets 24/7 is the problem

genestarwind.bsky.social•89 days ago

It's not just buying politicians with campaign cash. I suspect we're seeing the Neo-Hoovers using the data they acquired (by means fair and foul) to also blackmail those they can't buy.

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