{"id":20006,"date":"2025-03-06T10:53:44","date_gmt":"2025-03-05T23:53:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/sceggs\/?post_type=article&p=20006"},"modified":"2025-03-06T12:42:17","modified_gmt":"2025-03-06T01:42:17","slug":"in-this-together-15","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/sceggs\/article\/in-this-together-15\/","title":{"rendered":"In This Together"},"content":{"rendered":"

Managing the upcoming Social Media Ban for Under 16s<\/strong><\/h4>\n

The ban on social media for those under 16 will come into law at the end of 2025. It has been interesting to understand the range of responses to this way forward.<\/p>\n

There have been public voices, such as Amnesty International, that have called for the better control of content on the various platforms rather than an age restriction; this is akin to the approach of the European Union in the Digital Services Act<\/em> which places pressure on the platforms to make them more suitable in their usage by young people. Mental health experts have expressed concern about the removal of access to support groups for marginalised youth which can be found on social media platforms. For instance, the Centre for Multicultural Youth flagged their concerns for those students who have \u201cless access to services and support and [have] relied on social media platforms as a \u201cthird place\u201d to spend time. Similarly, a 2021 research paper undertaken by the CSIRO highlighted the direct usage correlation and need of social media for LGBTQ adolescents as they \u201ccreate a fun and easy way to connect to LGBTQ communities, explore identity and access emotional support\u2026. [where] Peer support has been noted as an important protective factor against poor mental health especially among LGBTQ communities\u201d. Furthermore, Australia’s eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant has raised concerns about the removal of support networks that are critical to some students\u2019 overall wellbeing. As such it is hard to ignore that social media has allowed young people freedom of expression, as well as a place to assemble and mix with peers, (and content-producers and influencers) outside the general controls or community they may experience in their face-to-face lives.<\/p>\n

On the other hand, the impact of social media on teenagers has been evident, often with the benefits of community being outweighed by negative impacts on body image, social isolation, healthy sleeping patterns and even cyberbullying. As such, the benefits of reducing the impact of social media doom scrolling are extensive and include:<\/p>\n