Thoughts on the social media ban from a 15 year old

Politicians are making major decisions about the lives of under 16s on social media yet they aren’t taking into consideration how we feel as a whole. As we have seen in Australia, the ban will not cut off all people under 16, some will find a way around it or come up with other creative alternatives to the common apps such as TikTok or Snapchat.

Social media allows people my age to have a space which is free from adults and it eliminates the need to travel to see your friends, which often relies on spending money on public transport or asking your parents to take you. 

Generally, teenagers feel there isn’t a space tailored for their needs because parks are catered towards younger children and even if you do go there, you get weird looks and adults assume you’re causing trouble. Even places such as youth groups are constantly monitored by adults and therefore social media has become a ‘Third Space’ for teenagers that isn’t school or home, which the companies have exploited when creating their platforms. 

For example, TikTok has created a “groups” feature allowing people to share videos with multiple people at once, which shows how the platforms have also intentionally tailored their platforms to be a space for teenagers. A ban would take away the space which we have made our own which politicians don’t understand as we have grown up around technology.

In theory, yes the ban is a good idea. I believe one of the biggest factors for the crisis within teenage mental health is due to constant access to social media and the addictive nature of the algorithm that teenagers are exposed to at such a young age. One of the main factors showing this is the increase in online bullying with the increasing popularity of apps like Snapchat with disappearing messages. 

However, banning apps like those will only cause people to flock to other apps like Whatsapp where the same problem will occur just in a different way. If people spent more time trying to fix the situation and understand how to change the apps to prevent cyber bullying situations, that would most likely be more effective.

Instead of a ban, the idea of a curfew turning off all social media apps at 8:30pm, not only for under 16s but under 18s, I feel makes a big impact on my daily life, so this is something that could be considered.

I use apps such as YouTube as a main source of revision for my exams and I know lots of my friends do the same, some even with TikTok. This means up until I complete my GSCEs, and then until I finish my A levels in 3 years time, I can’t access any revision videos which will be detrimental to how I learn and take in information, and I know it will be the same for others around the country. 

However, lots of misinformation is a result of social media and especially while younger people are still forming their own opinions of society and are more impressionable, seeing other people’s views on certain situations could influence their opinions more easily.

A ban also brings the question of, shouldn’t the individual apps be reprimanded for curating their algorithm to be toxic and addictive? 

I’m sure that you will have realised that after liking one video on a certain topic, you see lots more after. Social media does this to keep people in the loop of scrolling and finding content that they think is enjoyable. I believe that instead of focusing on a complete ban there should be changes made to the culture around social media like streaks on Snapchat which make you feel obliged to log on every day. 

To tailor to even younger audiences, videos have become shorter intending to keep children’s brains stimulated and they too become sucked in. This as a whole shows how the ban shouldn’t be targeting teens and should focus on making sure the companies are being held accountable for their part of why certain apps need to be banned.

A main reason why lots of people of older generations are for the ban is because they believe that the youth will go back to constantly playing out on the streets and socialising in real life. 

However the reality is that times have changed and many parents would rather their children stay in the house where it is safe and they know where they are, rather than being unaware of their child’s whereabouts when it’s dark and unsafe outside. Also, with no space of our own, teenagers will be more likely to be placed in dangerous and unpredictable situations. 

Due to our generation growing up around the internet and what we have seen in Australia, we know that some will find a way to stay on the banned apps. Especially if the parents believe in the ban, this will make people who get around it sneakier so if something bad happens such as bullying or worse, it would mean they would be less likely to come forward about it due to fear of getting in trouble making them more vulnerable.

Therefore, the social media ban which is intended to benefit teenagers could possibly become more of a problem causing secrets and potentially more dangerous situations as teenagers would become the minority on social media.