Young people want solutions that balance benefits and risks

On 10 October 2024, we attended a Social Media Summit run by the New South Wales and South Australian state governments. 

The Social Media Summit began with the ambitious goal of bringing together experts, policymakers, academics, young people, and community voices to discuss the positive and negative impacts of social media on people’s lives, and how the government can best support digital wellbeing. While everyone shared a desire to act in the best interests of young people, there were diverse opinions on how to achieve this.

Throughout the day, a range of issues and benefits related to social media were explored. However, these discussions often became too broad, blending conversations about social media with gaming, smartphones, digital technologies, and data in general. It wasn’t until the final session by Australia’s eSafety Commissioner Julie Iman Grant that any real effort was made to narrow down the focus.

Several key themes emerged during the discussions, especially around how to define social media and identify the root causes of the risks being discussed. The main distinctions included:

• Social media that exposes young people to risks from others through contact and exposure, such as platforms like Snapchat, TikTok, Instagram, and messaging apps like WhatsApp and Messenger.
• Social media that uses algorithms to influence behavior, commonly seen on feed-based platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.
• Platforms that datafy users and profile their behaviors, which is all online platforms.

Unsurprisingly, the issues discussed were just as varied. There were harrowing stories from families who had tragically lost children to suicide and parents uniting to limit smartphone use to minimize the risks tied to social media. 

A concerning trend was the loose use of the term “evidence” throughout the day. Some speakers declared, “the evidence is in,” while presenting cherry-picked, oversimplified snapshots of research, leaving others to remind the audience that there is little evidence to justify outright bans on social media.

Numerous analogies were also used to explain the risks and strategies around social media, ranging from ocean swimming and car crash tests to children’s playgrounds and sex education. Despite these tangible comparisons, Reset.Tech Australia Executive Director Alice Dawkins aptly summarized, “the harms may feel unprecedented, but the solutions are not.”

What Did Our Centre Members Have to Say?

It was clear that the richest discussions came from the voices of young people.

Digital Child representatives, Professor Julian Sefton-Green, Emeritus Professor Paul Chandler, and Emeritus Professor Donna Cross, participated in a panel discussing “Teaching the Digital Child: The Impact of Social Media on Education and Learning.” While the panel offered valuable insights, the Q&A, led by young members of the audience, stole the spotlight. They raised critical questions about the equity of mobile phone bans in schools and the pressures teachers face in managing distractions, cyberbullying, and more. 

The day’s discussions reinforced the importance of evidence-based advice, drawing on the work of our Centre members and the recommendations made in the Australian Child Rights Taskforce’s open letter about social media bans. 

Highlights of the Day

• The standout moderators, Miss Kupakwashe Matangira and Mr. Bailey Pickles, who skillfully engaged panels and audience members with clarity and care, while also sharing their own thoughts on the need for balance.
• Dr. Rhys Farthing and Alice Dawkins’ YouTube Shorts algorithm experiment, which demonstrated the need for more robust research protections in Australia to legally conduct such critical independent studies.
• The Digital Rights of the Child Panel, which emphasized the need for a child-centered digital environment, where young people’s rights come first. Chloe Shorten underscored this, saying, “We must halt the commercial trade of children’s data.”
• Frances Haugen’s call for social change through regulation, stressing the urgent need for governments to ensure social media data is made available for transparency and independent research.
• The voices and perspectives of young people in attendance, particularly the final summary delivered by Billy, who offered a thoughtful reflection on the day’s insights, all during his school holidays—and on his birthday!

How Can the Government Best Support Digital Wellbeing?

The message from young people was clear: they want to be heard, and they want creative solutions that balance the benefits of social media with appropriate regulations to minimise risks.

Unfortunately, as the day progressed, many decision-makers left, and neither of the state premiers were present for what was arguably the most important session—when Julie Iman Grant and Alice Dawkins presented evidence-based advice for urgent government action. Ministers were also absent during the final perspectives from the young people in attendance.