NextGen: Great teen hypocrisy: Too young for TikTok, old enough to vote?

Australia’s found itself in a bizarre contradiction. We’re about to ban teens from social media but pollies want them to vote. We can’t raise responsible, resilient citizens like this, writes Rion Ahl.

Australia has found itself in a bizarre contradiction.

On one hand, we’re about to slap an under 16s ban on social media.

And on the other hand, we’ve got politicians lining up to hand 16-year-olds the right to vote.

The suggestion seems to be that kids this age cannot be trusted with social networks and navigation of the online world but can be trusted to navigate an increasingly nuanced political one at an age where most of them want to just enjoy the joys of being children before they are thrown into the harsh adult world.

The government has a lot to say about what kids this age should and should not be allowed to do but it’s important to reflect on the biggest lesson that I have learned in the last five years. It is startling how little I knew about the world when I was younger and how vital those formative years were to develop my beliefs.

That’s why I find this whole debate hard to ignore.

The social media ban is intended to protect kids from the cesspool of the internet. But the contradiction is, while they’re banned from social media, politicians think they’re responsible enough to vote, writes Rion Ahl. Photo by JUSTIN SULLIVAN / GETTY IMAGES

Because when we talk about banning platforms or handing out voting rights, what we’re really talking about is whether we trust young people to grow and whether we’ll give them the safe spaces to do it.

So let’s take these proposals one at a time, starting with social media.

On November 29, the Online Safety Amendment was passed, requiring platforms like TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat to introduce strict age-verification or facial checks for anyone under 16 — a law expected to come into force by year’s end.

This week, YouTube was also added to the ban.

The goal is noble – a mental health crusade to protect our kids from the dangers posed by bad content and actors online.

I’ve spent time with a mental health institute targeted specifically at helping primary school children so this is a goal that I and much of Australia can respect which is why many have celebrated it as world-first.

But we must ensure that the solutions don’t unintentionally isolate.

We don’t want the social media ban to push kids to seek it underground. (Photo by William WEST / AFP)

Lonely teenagers need options to communicate that prevent them from seeking out riskier corners of the internet with less moderation.

Reducing harm will mean providing safe options instead of pushing social networks underground.

We also need to ensure that we respect privacy.

Age-verification using facial recognition or ID checks could lead to large-scale data collection in an era where data is a currency.

Leo Puglisi, the teenage founder of 6 News agrees.

In the backdrop of recent Australian data leaks, “the idea that every Australian – teen or adult – will need to hand over personal ID to overseas social media sites shows how bad this could get.”

The truth is social media is harmful for our young people.

It contains vile cesspools of dangerous content and people. But we need to focus beyond restricting young Australians from the danger of the platforms, by empowering the parents who should hold some responsibility.

Countries like China who limit children to 40 minutes of usage per day, emphasise educational and inspirational content and establish parental controls.

A model like this allows us to take care of our kids and gives the power back to the parents.

We can invest in digital literacy, build resilient mindsets, and teach healthy online habits so that when kids are over 16, they are well equipped to handle the online world.

It’s time to let kids be kids – allowing them the responsibly learn about the world through their increasingly necessary social networks and building infrastructure around these networks so parents can teach and monitor safe online communications and content.

But this question of responsibility doesn’t stop with social media.

Should kids be banned from social media but allowed to vote? (Photo by Michael M. Santiago)

It’s at the heart of another debate that’s been gaining traction: whether we should hand younger citizens the right to vote.

If we’re serious about teaching responsibility, we also have to be honest about the limits of judgment at that age.

This hasn’t stopped politicians from launching a push to lower the voting age.

The logic goes: “They pay tax, they drive, and they should get a say.” It sounds neat until you actually think about it.

Maturity matters. Critical thinking, life experience and exposure to real world consequences – voting demands all three.

We don’t know it all at 18, but we know a magnitude more than we do at 16.

Pushing the voting age down would create a new sector of influencers and political campaigns and teachers chasing the teenage vote – turning our educational institutions into yet another place where political capital is exchanged at the cost of learning.

Those visits from politicians to the local primary school?

No longer about the kids but about the ballots in their hands.

So its time to decide the Australia we want for our young people.

Banning teens from social media because they’re ‘too young to handle it’ while handing them ballot papers to decide national policy is not just hypocritical. It’s dangerous.

We can’t raise resilient, responsible citizens by swinging between bans and premature privileges. There’s not strength in a safety bubble or a democracy through shortcuts.

What we need is simple – a realistic tech policy that teaches digital literacy and a civic education that builds understanding before handing over voting rights.

Because the answer to every problem doesn’t stop at a ban… or a ballot.

Sometimes, it’s actually growing up and letting our kids grow up, too.

Rion Ahl writes about the future of business and education through NextGen – a weekly column exploring the frontiers of innovation through the lens of young Australians. Amidst exponential technology and a rapidly changing global order, NextGen discusses those optimistic and determined to shape what’s coming.

Originally published as NextGen: Great teen hypocrisy: Too young for TikTok, old enough to vote?