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Norway set to become latest country to ban social media for under 16s

bloomberg.com

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Re: Norway set to become latest country to ban social media for under 16s

#181

Post by turtlesdown11 »

ozgrakkurt wrote: post #7
benj111 wrote: post #2

Is there any evidence for all this? This sums up my understanding of the current situation ( https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/understand-the-im... ) That isn't anywhere near definitive. Further it seems to me, this will just allow the tech companies to assume there are no kids, and remove the protections currently available. Yes there is an issue of quantity, but it seems that we should be focussing on soci…

Seriously. I see at least one baby with a phone in hand every time I go out. This is 100% an education issue and they don't understand how harmful that can be to their child's brain. Governments are focusing on banning things because some reason but real solution is education and support imo. Similar issue with school shottings. Government wants to ban guns or put controls on schools but they don't invest enough on m…

> This is 100% an education issue and they don't understand how harmful that can be to their child's brain.

Which social media companies are acknowledging there is a problem and providing data to inform parents?

Re: Norway set to become latest country to ban social media for under 16s

#182

Post by [deleted] »

10xDev wrote: post #164
foobiekr wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The problem is that it really is the 14-21 group that where it has the most (and increasing) influence. They should have banned it for under 18.

Today it will be First it was indoor smoking, now it will be for everyone born after 2008 in the UK.

[deleted]

Re: Norway set to become latest country to ban social media for under 16s

#183

Post by LanceH »

foobiekr wrote: post #135
10xDev wrote: post #94

Good, social media is cancer on society and will only get worse with LLMs, Deepfakes etc. All the astroturfing in favour of social media couldn't possibly change my mind on how harmful social media has been on society.

The problem is that it really is the 14-21 group that where it has the most (and increasing) influence. They should have banned it for under 18.

As with any ban on anything, I would prefer that it start with the people who want it banned. So any advocates against social media and get off social media. Every politician and government employee in Norway should be off it.

In general, if someone comes along and says that someone else's rights should be shrunk, I think they should give up those same rights first.

You can just look at the US congress for how this isn't done as they frequently carve out exceptions for themselves and staffers.

Re: Norway set to become latest country to ban social media for under 16s

#185

Post by everdrive »

fsflover wrote: post #108
10xDev wrote: post #94

Good, social media is cancer on society and will only get worse with LLMs, Deepfakes etc. All the astroturfing in favour of social media couldn't possibly change my mind on how harmful social media has been on society.

Does HN count, or is the actual problem the algorithmic feeds?

[flagged]

Re: Norway set to become latest country to ban social media for under 16s

#186

Post by lurkingllama »

10xDev wrote: post #94

Good, social media is cancer on society and will only get worse with LLMs, Deepfakes etc. All the astroturfing in favour of social media couldn't possibly change my mind on how harmful social media has been on society.

It's funny to me that we still call it "social media", when it bears no similarities to its original form. Back when your feed was sourced from your real-life friends and colleagues, and the only "algorithms" that existed were to show your latest friend's post at the top.

It's a bummer, because I think a platform that follows Facebook's original intent has just as much value in today's world, if not more.

Re: Norway set to become latest country to ban social media for under 16s

#189

Post by latexr »

LanceH wrote: post #183
foobiekr wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The problem is that it really is the 14-21 group that where it has the most (and increasing) influence. They should have banned it for under 18.

As with any ban on anything, I would prefer that it start with the people who want it banned. So any advocates against social media and get off social media. Every politician and government employee in Norway should be off it. In general, if someone comes along and says that someone else's rights should be shrunk, I think they should give up those same rights first. You can just look at the US congress for how this i…

By that logic, no politician and government employee would be able to drive a car or have a job, since we also “ban” those for minors.

We’re not talking about a lifetime ban on social media, the argument is certain kinds of things are gated from people under a certain age because we know those are harmful and can negatively impact your entire life going forward when not done conscientiously, and most people below a certain age do not yet possess the capacity to make an informed decision about their use.

Re: Norway set to become latest country to ban social media for under 16s

#190

Post by pembrook »

10xDev wrote: post #94

Good, social media is cancer on society and will only get worse with LLMs, Deepfakes etc. All the astroturfing in favour of social media couldn't possibly change my mind on how harmful social media has been on society.

> All the astroturfing in favour of social media couldn't possibly change my mind

What astroturfing? This is the most popular moral panic of our times. Yours is the default normie position...basically what is leading to all this poorly thought out legislation being emotionally shouted by the mob into existence.

Just so you're aware, all the worst laws are the ones created when the populace has been emotionally riled up into a mob over something, and where people refuse to rationally look the reality of the issue. See also: nuclear power, 9/11, the 90s satanic panic, violent video games in the 2000s, jazz music in the 1920s, the subliminal lyrics trials of the 80s, etc. etc.

Most of the actual academic literature suggests this is a giant moral panic.

The funniest part of all of it is the "social media mental health crisis" that millennials think they're saving their children from doesn't even exist anymore. All the dominant platforms of today are not based on the social graph. Nobody is getting bullied on their timeline or seeing all the parties they weren't invited to anymore. The most popular platform right now is essentially short form MTV.

If we're banning that and any website with "social" functions, anything with comments or upvotes like this website needs to be included.

You're cheering on identity gating the entire internet and a giant erosion of privacy. But again, your mind is made up already and as you've said, no rational thought can change it. So enjoy the new world of unintended consequences you're creating. When this moral panic is over, you may look back with a few regrets like everyone has over the Patriot Act.

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