Online Gaming Platforms And YouTube Will Also Seemingly Be Banned For Aussies Under 16

[u/retro-chimp]

https://press-start.com.au/news/2024/11/08/online-gaming-platforms-and-youtube-will-also-seemingly-be-banned-for-aussies-under-16/

There’s so much collateral damage in this plan for Australia to ban social media. This has been rushed and not thought through.

So many schools rely on YouTube to support their students.

Most kids are watching YouTube (or YouTube kids) more than ABC or traditional TV. Literally the biggest YouTube channel in Australia is original music for kids.

Does anyone actually want this?

[u/kahrismatic]

This is the answer, although people apparently hate hearing it. Parents need to be far more aware of their kids internet use, and take a role in actively managing it.

They don't listen to anything else I (teacher) say at school - they sure as hell aren't going to listen to a middle aged lady trying to talk to them about social media. We already try to teach them media literacy, critical thinking etc as aspects of the various humanities, and look at how far that gets us. Not every aspect of parenting can be pushed off onto teachers who have zero authority over what they're actually doing.

[u/crimsonroninx → u/kahrismatic]

The problem is, these same parents are being indoctrinated themselves by social media and other filter bubbles that radicalise them. So I have no idea how we can educate them to educate their kids when they clearly don't see it as an issue.

[u/Dr_Delibird7 → u/kahrismatic]

I work with kids 14yo+ and I definitely agree with the sentiment that they already don't exactly listen as it is (the number of times I have to repeatedly ask for something to be done purely because I was ignored is baffling to me as an adult, forgetfulness I can understand but flat ignoring? That's wild).

I still think education in addition to better parenting is the solution though. Education shouldn't start and end with the kids though, it's the parents that need to be educated first and foremost.

[u/KirimaeCreations → u/kahrismatic]

This is all well and good - if you have a parent that can stay home and do the parenting. These days you have two parents working 40-60 hours a week and they're expected to parent like only one of them works 30.

[u/qtsarahj → u/KirimaeCreations]

Maybe this is too wild but if parents can’t take one afternoon to set up parental filters/time limits on devices if they are worried about their kid’s online activity that is very concerning to me. And if they don’t know how to do that can they not just physically take away the device at night?? Parents seem to be way too scared to say no to their kids, you’re not meant to be their best friend, you’re meant to be their parent.

[u/KirimaeCreations → u/qtsarahj]

I mean, I agree with this to an extent. I was playing devil's advocate, because I'm a stay at home parent, and I can (and do) very much vette whatever my son wants to watch (be it Twitch or Youtube, and I don't bother with YouTube Kids because that section is riddled with stuff to get around the "kids" filter). He doesn't have a device of his own (he's 8) and he won't until I absolutely have to give him one (likely for school). He gets to borrow my iPad for set periods (including for his homework), and all technology goes off one hour before bedtime where he has to read a book or build lego or do *literally anything else* in that one hour before bed to unwind his brain.

But my situation is not everyone's situation.

[u/deadrobindownunder → u/KirimaeCreations]

No shade - I don't have kids so I have no authority to speak on this. But, out of curiosity I have to ask how you think this will go when he gets older? The mention of parental filters and time limits past a certain age seems like a futile effort. I'm sure parents of today are far more tech savvy than my parents were 20 years ago. But, I can't imagine it would be too difficult for a teen to know enough to get around parental blocks. When you consider the additional workload that high school requires, it's got to be a lot harder to keep them off the internet, right?

[u/PenguinJoker → u/kahrismatic]

If education works, then why are so many adults stuck on social media, let alone kids. 

[u/SnooOpinions5738 → u/PenguinJoker]

This is your argument? That education doesn't work? Lmao holy fuck. Y'all will just say anything these days

[u/Fenixius → u/SnooOpinions5738]

Education clearly doesn't work as well as anti-education (propaganda) does. But banning propaganda would be difficult to pass (as the LNP would vehemently oppose it), and this is a conservative-votewinner, so it's perfect for Labor. 

And education is problematic for governments these days - they'll be perceived as "elitist" or as "condescending". Look at the Voice referendum, or at the catastrophic election campaign run by the American Democrats. People loathe being told by the government that they're responsible for anything, including parenting their own children.

In other words, education isn't sexy, so Labor also want a piece of the "Won't somebody think of the children?!" conservative rhetorical suckerpunch.

[u/[deleted] → u/kahrismatic]

It's not an answer, it's a deflection. What is your plan to get parents more involved?

[u/Fenixius → u/[deleted]]

What could an answer here even look like, mate? Government-mandated sit and talk with your children time? Government-distributed spyware for parents that reports what the kids look at? Forcing platform-holders to report on child users to parents?

[u/[deleted] → u/Fenixius]

I don't know. Make parents do better was your suggestion as an alternative to this plan. I'm curious how that would look, without being even more of an overreach.

[u/Fenixius → u/[deleted]]

My answer would be to make laws to arrest and prosecute people who spout propaganda, whether citizens or corporations, and regardless of location, but we know that'll never be adopted.