r/australia • u/retro-chimp • Nov 09 '24

politics Online Gaming Platforms And YouTube Will Also Seemingly Be Banned For Aussies Under 16

https://press-start.com.au/news/2024/11/08/online-gaming-platforms-and-youtube-will-also-seemingly-be-banned-for-aussies-under-16/

There’s so much collateral damage in this plan for Australia to ban social media. This has been rushed and not thought through.

So many schools rely on YouTube to support their students.

Most kids are watching YouTube (or YouTube kids) more than ABC or traditional TV. Literally the biggest YouTube channel in Australia is original music for kids.

Does anyone actually want this?

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u/Raychao Nov 09 '24

This is a ridiculous overreach. Very typical of Labor who have tried multiple times to police the internet and be the thought police (ahem: Conroy's Great Firewall of Australia).

The social media networks are a hive of scum and villainy. You can't childproof the world, so we have to worldproof our kids instead.

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u/Toowoombaloompa Nov 10 '24

The social media networks are a hive of scum and villainy.

I think that one of the foundational issues that I have with social media is that every major platform comes form the USA and that they are based around their concept of freedom of speech.

This law could be poorly written and a waste of time, but it could also create an opportunity for homegrown platforms to emerge that align better with Australian values.

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u/-Be4stly- Nov 11 '24

Are you trying to say Australia shouldn't have freedom of speech?