Social media: Saving children from themselves

It is an almost immutable law of the universe that the older generation disapproves of, or even wants to ban, the latest fad focused on by children and teens.

No surprise, then, that the Australian government has said it plans to ban children from all access to social media.

But before we lash out at a possible “Big Brother” overreach, let’s consider some of the possible negatives of the most popular social media platforms.

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In Kosovo this week, horrified parents and medics began seeing an increase in children harming themselves because of a game on the Tiktok channel which targets girls between nine and 17 and in which kids copy the various “challenges”, which include mutilating themselves.

That’s not normal.

And the cocooned world of social media, where there is very little filtering of extreme views and practices, yet which still is a playground for sexual predators, is not normal.

Immature brains and psyches can be irreparably damaged by some of the content on these digital platforms.

The social media platform owners pooh-pooh the dangers, likening a restriction to a ban on swimming because occasionally people drown.

The Australian government, though, wants to protect youngsters now – before they are affected beyond hope of recovery.

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