‘Social media should be treated like tobacco’: Streeting calls for under-16s ban on certain platforms
Summary
Wes Streeting, a former UK health secretary, compared social media companies to the tobacco industry and called for banning under-16s from certain platforms. The UK government is finishing a consultation on social media age limits and plans to decide soon on new rules to protect children online.Key Facts
- Wes Streeting wants to treat social media like tobacco because of its addictive nature and health risks.
- He supports banning under-16s from some social media platforms.
- The UK government has been consulting on age limits for social media for 12 weeks and will decide soon.
- Possible measures include restrictions on features like live streaming, location sharing, infinite scrolling, and personalized content algorithms.
- The government may also impose app curfews and rules on chatbots.
- Some officials worry a strict ban might push young people onto unsafe parts of the internet or leave them unprepared to use technology.
- Child safety groups say age limits alone are not enough and want bans on advertising and manipulative design targeting kids.
- A survey of UK pediatricians found nearly half are concerned about social media’s links to self-harm and suicide in children.
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