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​Hi, Reader -

In the midst of navigating this busy time of year, you might have heard that Australia’s Senate recently voted for a ban on social media for youth under age 16. Social media companies have one year to find a way to stop Australian kids under 16 from opening new accounts on their apps or risk billions in fines. There is no clear plan for *how* to make this happen, but the stakes are considerable and other countries are considering similar rules.

Some parents and activists believe this will make kids safe, while many other parents, educators and experts are concerned. Count me in the the concerned camp! I am worried about young people's rights and free speech--and I think that these bans take focus away from regulating the apps and teaching young people HOW to use digital tools thoughtfully.

Why are tech privacy experts and adolescent development researchers worried about Australia’s ban and similar efforts around the world?

Let me unpack some of the reasons why:

Five problems with banning under 16s

Problem #1: Age bans could let companies off the hook

One of the biggest concerns experts have is that age-bans do not hold social media companies accountable. Australian tech research Daniel Argus points out that it lets the companies “off the hook in making necessary reforms to the quality of content on their platforms.” He calls the legislation "reckless."

Eleven years ago, Emily Bazelon went inside Facebook (now Meta) and showed how limited their resources were for responding to reports of bullying, hate accounts and more. Rather than hold these mega-companies accountable, a higher age ban absolves them of their mandate to respond. With this new ban, I worry that if parents report a tween or younger teen experiencing bullying, social media companies will refer them to the age guidelines and shrug.dd

As I’ve argued in Newsweek—companies like Meta, SnapChat, and TikTok need to be responsive to concerns from *all* users, not just kids. The resources these companies devote to supporting users would be much better spent by making the algorithms less invasive, making privacy policies more clear and responding quickly and thoughtfully to reports of harassment, impersonation, violent footage, etc.

There are ways to improve the design tech to make it safer for younger adolescents. Check out this guide from a panel of expert researchers at the National Scientific Council on Adolescence. It proposes limitations on targeted advertising and providing training tools to young users. It also suggests that families make decisions about allowing access based on age, maturity, etc.

Pushing 14-year-olds off mainstream social media apps to more unregulated platforms or unwittingly encouraging them to utilize VPNS makes them less safe, not more.

Problem #2: Age gating 16 for social apps is anti-democratic. It silences activists, harms kids in oppressed groups, and fails to prepare young citizens to vote at 18.

When I was writing Growing Up in Public, I got to meet with and interview many incredible young creators and activists. Some of these young leaders started social media channels or engaging with public dialog at ages 14 or 15. In a world where kids are activists, keeping them off social platforms shuts down or marginalizes their voices. We know that bans place particular burdens on kids who are already marginalized, such as members of LGBTQ+ communities.

Further, many of us get our news and engage in civic conversations via social platforms. Even though these platforms are imperfect, and algorithms may limit the ideas we are exposed to, we can't just ignore how social platforms are a political space where issues are debated and discussed. We can work on holding apps accountable for sharing misinformation and for prioritizing conflict.

Shutting kids out of mainstream discourse until two years before they can vote is anti-democratic...it doesn't give teens enough time to learn the ropes, become media literate and socially literate. In Australia, voting is mandatory, so 18 year olds had better be ready. In the US, under half of voters under 29 showing up…so we have some work to do to prepare and engage young voters.

Social media can encourage young people to vote and be aware of social issues. While we may wish people got their news in other ways…many people of all ages, especially young people, are getting their news via social media. We don’t want to put 13-15 year olds in a news blackout. Political and media literacy is best begun before the age of 16, as young people need to be informed, ready and registered by the time they are 18.

Problem #3:

Waiting till 16 is divides high school in half, is reputationally risky and misses an important window for mentorship

If we saw an effective social media age ban to 16 in the US, it would divide high school communities in half. One of the best things about high schools is multi-age communities where kids learn and collaborate on a team and activities across an age range. Picture the Debate Team SnapChat. An age ban would create an in and an out group or eliminate an opportunity for community building.

A caring adult might be a fan of the age-ban because they are worried about kids and their searchable reputations when they are applying to college. Many parents and educators worry that new users might exuberantly post something thoughtless, overly revealing or worse right as they are just getting started on social media. Many of those mistakes will be self-correcting. Young people learn from them and move forward. Europe and the UK have laws protecting digital reputations–and so should we!

Making mistakes can be part of learning. But age bans that set up older teens to launch into the social media waters right as they might be looking for a first job, applying for scholarships and forging a more public identity in the world. Joining the social media universe for the first time at 16 puts pressure on older adolescents to get it right from the beginning.

Further, younger kids need support and mentorship as they navigate social media initially. The opportunity to teach kids how to make healthy choices in their digital lives is best begun earlier–well before they have one foot out the door. By age 16, young people are working on separating from adult authority and are less likely to lean into adults for mentorship and direction.

Also of concern: Would the ban encourage schools to avoid incorporating digital citizenship curriculum in elementary and middle schools. Or pressure them towards an abstinence-only approach?
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We know how well that works...

If you are still reading and want to see reasons 4 and 5, the full article is on my website. If you'd like to listen to a conversation about these things, I was on a podcast with Debbie Sorenson, Emily Edlynn, Tracy Dennis-Tiwary, and Ellen Galinsky!

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Bottom line: instead of banning, can we mentor kids on HOW to create boundaries? Help them identify some kinds of content as misleading, dangerous or toxic? We need to remind them only to be in contact with people they actually know when they are younger and how to safely interact with new people online as they get older. Parents should absolutely teach kids to get the heck off their phones and night and get some sleep.

Wherever they go in person or online, kids must have safe people to talk to if someone violates their boundaries, threatens them, etc. Will a 14-year-old being harassed on SnapChat be able to report it if they are afraid to admit they used a VPN or lied about their birth year to join the app? OR will they be pushed to darker and less regulated corners of the Internet?

Letting kids play Roblox on public servers at the age of seven and then saying they can’t have a Snapchat account until they are 16 is not a helpful way to onboard that young digital citizen and set them up for success. Pushing kids to less regulated spaces is not the answer. Silencing young people’s voices when they are trying to save the world is repressive.

We can do better. We have to do better.

Wishing you an easy end of the semester and a cozy winter "break"!

Devorah
​Where's Devorah?

PS: Need a handy gift for any parents or educators in your life? Get them Growing Up In Public so you can have a fun bookclub or coffee chat with them.

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