Australia tries to implement a safety net for young minds. Is it right or wrong? The answer is complex.
Social media has long since become a tool of communication for the entire world. The majority of Gen Z and millennials enjoyed the benefits of social media and its downsides.
Everyone remembers the days when a comment or the number of likes meant it was a great day or the worst day ever. And oh, god, the memes. There was so much fun back in those days.
But it hid and amplified a darkness simultaneously: bullying.
Bullying became so prominent that children decided it was severe enough to take their own lives or the lives of others. Body shaming, gender discrimination, and anti-life propaganda filled these social websites.
What then of the brains of our current generation of children? They must be protected, and they must be exposed to the real world. Where, yes, darkness exists, but so does a support system.
One is missing from the algorithm of today.
Yet, children do have their own say in this, and not all of them agree. Look at interviews with them, and you’ll see nuanced and articulate responses. These are responsible teens who know what life is about.
Adults of today cannot deny that the children have matured. But that is why the ban is so vital- social media can be a breeding ground.
The social media trap
Australia’s response to social media has been a long time coming. After studies have shown the effect of social media on the minds of teens and children, it has to be a no-brainer.
Social media feeds on engagement. Negative or positive doesn’t matter. It is a feeding machine.
Humanity needs to regulate it or suffer damaging consequences. However, this raises an ethical question: what about children’s autonomy?
Adults and corresponding regulatory bodies cannot deny them their freedom of choice for the greater good- their voices must be put out there and reasoned with. But they cannot be ignored. For ignorance and being ignored is what breeds the social media trap.
