Restricting young people from digital platforms in Australia: the experience of digital harms and freedom of expression in community support for youth social media age bans

Le résumé fourni par la source

In 2024, the Australian government introduced legislation requiring digital platforms to restrict Australian users under sixteen years from holding social media accounts to protect from digital harms such as abuse and disinformation. The first half of this paper analyses key discourses on the mandatory restriction, demonstrating an underlying assumption that young people’s use of digital platforms is about exposure to (sometimes problematic) content rather than participation, sharing, creativity, art, engagement and debate. The second half of the paper analyses the factors that condition widespread adult support for restriction. Drawing on survey data of Australian adults exposed to digital harms, we analyse how support for mandatory restriction may be shaped by (i) demographic factors, and (ii) experiencing or witnessing digital harms. We end by discussing how participants who gave a very high importance to free speech but sought to restrict young people from social media likewise ignores youth participatory culture online.

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