LISTEN: Should government impose social media age limits for kids?
In the same way you wouldn’t allow a 12-year-old to drive a car, you shouldn’t let them use a cell phone, says Emma Sadleir.
Photo: Unsplash/bruce mars
Anele and The Club on 947 speak to social media law expert, Emma Sadleir.
Discussions on social media age limits sparked after Australia put forward its intention to set a minimum limit for children.
While there is no confirmation on the specific age demographic yet, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said it would likely be between 14 and 16.
He cites mental and physical health concerns.
The current age limit for social media accounts such as Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok is generally 13.
“I’m not a huge fan of social media for kids under the age of 14 or even 16 because of brain development, self-awareness… that level of expectation seeing other people’s kids have everything.”
- Cindy Poluta, Anele and The Club
“The reason I feel social media is bad for kids is because they can’t switch off from school. Back when I was in school, at 4 pm when I go home, that’s it, there’s nothing more from school that follows me home… with social media, the kids can’t switch off.”
- Anele Mdoda, Anele and The Club
In the same way you wouldn’t allow a 12-year-old to drive a car, you shouldn’t let them use a cell phone, says Sadleir.
She adds that you’re putting something very powerful in the hands of a kid who must make very important decisions that can cause immense harm to others.
“I can’t tell you how hectic some of the cases are that I am dealing with in that [10 to 14] age group… the bullying is horrific at that age, at that age they don’t understand the consequences.”
- Emma Sadleir, social media law expert
“It’s not that they’re not incredibly bright kids, they’re just not there yet so I think that the idea of putting some kind of age limit on phones is an excellent idea.”
- Emma Sadleir, social media law expert
However, bringing this matter into the South African legislature will be challenging as it “is always going to play catch up”.
“But the fact that the world is talking about these issues makes me happy… I’ve been shouting about this from the rooftops for a decade and it feels like the world is suddenly waking up.”
- Emma Sadleir, social media law expert
Scroll up to the audio player to listen to the discussion