The UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced a social media ban for under-16s across the country, affecting platforms many teenagers use today.
Many expect Ireland will soon follow suit, as the aim is to enhance child safety by restricting social media and AI chatbots, with regulations in the UK expected to be in place by next spring. The ban is set to cover sites including TikTok, Instagram, Threads, Facebook, X, YouTube, Snapchat and Reddit.
But while the announcement is celebrated by child safety experts and many parents, not everyone agrees that a complete ban on social media is the way to go.
In a post shared to Instagram, UK mum Emi Ozmen revealed her thoughts on today’s announcement as the parent of a teen who currently uses social media.
‘Unpopular opinion on the under 16s social media ban’
In a carousel post, Ozmen writes:
‘Unpopular opinion on the under 16s social media ban as a 44-year-old mum of a teen.’
She then, in the next slide, goes on to make the point:
‘Teens hide things and lie. We all did it. To me, making something naughty and banned means they will lie and hide more and talk to us less (and still use it). This may make them more unsafe.’
The mum continues:
‘The government banning social media to help our children’s mental health but not funding actual mental health services/charities/support feels ironic. I like the thought of young boys seeing less toxic content that they may not have been exposed to before. Sadly, a lot of tabloid-reading dads and granddads have more influence over them than social media, and social media may be a way for them to see other perspectives that they may not have been taught at home.’
She adds:
‘My teenager’s mental health has been affected by social media. She has also been affected by WhatsApp groups, friendship circles, irl behaviours. This is one fraction of what teens deal with. We all still need to spend time educating our kids about their impact on others.’
The mum’s post continues:
‘Teaching children to be resilient and deal with the pressures of adult life is what our jobs are. Introducing social media slowly and teaching kids how to navigate it so that as an adult they are prepared feels better to me. At 16 they will still need to be educated and prepared, and I worry they will naturally think they know it all by then.’
The mum then speaks about how phones already play a big part in our our lives, and telling kids to put them away is pointless is parents have their heads in their phone anyway.
‘Banning children from platforms worth billions that should be made to police them properly is is the wrong people facing consequences to me.’
The mum then says she is not anti trying to protect young people’s mental health. But banning social media, in her opinion, might not be the miracle solution people seem to think it is.
‘Keep talking to your teen,’ the mum urges.
‘It is the only thing that helps.’
In the caption to her post, Ozmen further explains her stance, while also asking what other parents think about the social media ban.
‘Just being honest about my thoughts as a mum of a teen,’ she writes, adding:
‘I know it’s a really polarising topic and none of us know if it will be beneficial yet but these were my thoughts when I saw the announcement. What do you think?’
