Unplug24: 23,000 kids take a stand with social media blackout

More than 20,000 Aussie schoolchildren are giving up social media for 24 hours today, as part of a national campaign to raise awareness of the dangers.

More than 20,000 Aussie schoolchildren are giving up social media for 24 hours today, as part of a national campaign to raise awareness of the dangers.

Unplug24, the name of the initiative, is also being supported by a host of big names, among them singer Jessica Mauboy, fitness guru Michelle Bridges, Olympian Lani Pallister, Fox Footy presenter Sarah Jones, Opals basketballer Alice Kunek, actor Ada Nicodemou, as well as politicians including Health Minister Mark Butler and Senator Jacqui Lambie.

Fox Footy presenter Sarah Jones. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

Opals player Alice Kunek. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

The national day of social media silence was conceived by Wayne Holdsworth, whose son, Mac, took his own life on this day a year ago.

The Melbourne teenager, who dreamt of becoming a carpenter, fell victim to a sextortion plot in which he was tricked into sending an explicit photo of himself and then blackmailed via his Snapchat and Instagram accounts.

Last month Sydney schoolgirl Charlotte O’Brien, 12, shocked the nation when she took her life after being bullied online.

The high profile stars join News Corp and SmackTalk, a suicide prevention charity set up in Mac’s name, along with every boarder in Australia, in backing the day.

News presenter Sandra Sully. Picture: Supplied

Actor Ada Nicodemou. Picture: Jeremy Greive

Australian Boarding Schools Association CEO Richard Stokes said every one of the country’s 201 boarding schools – comprising 23,000 pupils – were taking part in Unplug24 today.

Among them are some of Australia’s most exclusive schools including Kambala School and The Scots College in Sydney, Brisbane Grammar School, Geelong Grammar School in Victoria, and Penbroke School in Adelaide.

There are also tiny rural schools like Torres Strait Kaziw Meta on Thursday Island, in Queensland, which has just 67 boarders, who have also quit social media for Unplug24.

Schoolkids from Torres Strait Kaziw Meta on Thursday Island played footy today instead of being on the phones, in support of Unplug24. Supplied

“Social media has had the greatest negative impact on kids we have ever seen,” Mr Stokes said.

“It has a great power over some kids and a negative influence on them.”

He said one of the benefits of boarding is that every boarder has to hand their phones in before bed every night, so they all get a good night’s sleep, but coming off it for an entire day is the “greatest idea ever”, according to all the school heads who agreed to do it.

And feedback was that the kids liked the “concept of showing they are strong and in control” and can do without it.

Pupils from Marist College Ashgrove, in Brisbane, Jaxon Pambid, Riley Gillece, Ewan Wood, George Philp and James Johnston are among the 23,000 pupils supporting Unplug24. Picture: Richard Walker

Mr Stokes said it was also an important to raise awareness of how social media can expose children to dangers like sextortion and bullying.

“When it comes to sextortion, the boys all think it won’t happen to them, but it does,” Mr Stokes said.

“With the girls it’s more about the bullying.”

Mr Stokes said one school in Perth was already doing something similar to this campaign but on a weekly basis. They run ‘Unplugged Thursdays’, where children learn life skills such as managing money, changing tyres and cooking instead of scrolling on their phones.

Brisbane’s Marist College Ashgrove Head Jim Noble has 170 male boarders taking part and all phones and laptops have been locked away for 24 hours.

The kids will have access to the pool, weights room, sports fields and a dog walking club.

He hoped that the phone-free day would show the boys “they can still have a great time in each other’s company without technology”.

“I’m a parent as well and see the addiction,” Mr Noble said.

“When we told the parents what we were doing I had emails back from them saying it was ‘so good’ and to ‘go hard’.”

Tom Curtain is a country and western singer, whose single, ‘Speak Up’, was written in memory of family friend Amy ‘Dolly’ Everett, who took her own life after she was bullied online.

Doing it for Dolly

For country and western singer Tom Curtain, a friend of the family of Dolly Everett, who took her life aged 14 after being bullied online, Unplug24 was something he just had to do.

“As an ambassador for Dolly’s Dream, I’ve seen firsthand the devastating impact social media can have on young lives,” Curtain said.

“We need to raise awareness about the dangers kids face online, it’s something I talk about with students when I visit regional schools and this campaign is also an important step in helping to protect them from the tragic consequences of cyberbullying.

“Through my music, I’ve always aimed to stamp out bullying, one song at a time. Be Kind is my latest song and I think the title speaks for itself.”

He said he if taking part in Unplug24 helped just one young person realise they’re not alone, or gives them the courage to speak up, then he was glad to be part of it.

“Disconnecting from social media, even for a day, can have real benefits for our mental health. If we can save just one life by spreading awareness and encouraging these conversations, then I’m proud to stand as a role model for this cause.”

News Corp is also running the Let Them Be Kids campaign to raise the age children can access social media to 16, which has received support from thousands of parents across Australia, as well as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

Originally published as Unplug24: 23,000 kids take a stand with social media blackout