At an impassioned panel at SXSW Sydney yesterday, radio host and founder of the 36 Months movement, Michael “Wippa” Wipfli slammed the government for not acting swiftly enough or taking enough responsibility in relation to the raise the age movement.
The 36 Months movement is urging the government to change policy and raise the threshold for social media citizenship. This means delaying the age at which teenagers can sign up for social media accounts from 13 to 16.
In a panel alongside radio host Hamish Blake and author Maggie Dent, Wippa called out Albanese appealing for a “captain’s call right now”.
“He needs to put his hand up and say, this is not good enough for our kids, this is not good enough for our country – it’s [the age limit on social media] 16, deal with it”.
“He can’t turn to the communications minister; he can’t turn to the Safety Commissioner at this time and say, ‘hey, what do you guys think?'” Wippa explained. “He represents the public, and he can’t turn to them and say ‘tell me what I should do here'”.
While acknowledging that there is progress being made, saying it does feel like “we are close”, Wippa said that the action is simply not happening with the appropriate level of urgency or with the right actions. “We have a massive decision coming, we are six weeks away from a possible change where we could lead the world on this topic and really make an impact on families and kids because right now, they are on the edge”.
Wippa expressed concerns with statements made by Communications Minister Michelle Rowland that said that social media platforms that have a “low risk of harm” would still be allowed to be used by young people.
“The aim is to create positive incentives for the digital platforms to develop age-appropriate versions for their apps,” Wippa said, detailing Rowland’s plans.
“She wants to put the onus on platforms, not the parents to enforce the ban. So it’s up to the platform to demonstrate that they are taking responsible steps. It’s about them taking responsible steps to ensure the fundamental protections are in place at the source. So we go back to the social media platforms and ask them to do something that they simply have no interest in doing”.
“This scares the shit out of me to be honest”.
Wippa’s appearance at SXSW follows the Social Media Summit last week, co-hosted by the NSW and South Australian governments. The summit aimed to spark solutions to the growing mental health crisis linked to online platforms. Digging into the broader societal impacts of social media and proposing actionable solutions, the summit addressed the prevailing and pressing issues facing youth in Australia as we become more and more aware of the impacts that social media can have on mental health, particularly among children and teenagers.
Key insights from the NSW Governments Have Your Say research, which ran from August 11 to September 15, 2024, reinforced the urgency of the discussion and shaped the conversations of the summit. Over 21,000 participants contributed to the consultation, with 87 per cent of respondents supporting the introduction of an age limit for social media use—the most common suggestion being 16 years. The data reflected a broad consensus across different demographics that age restrictions are crucial, with parents and females being the most supportive.
Parental concerns were particularly pronounced. The findings revealed that 76 per cent of parents of 5-17-year-olds reported their child’s daily social media usage, averaging 2 hours and 19 minutes—a figure that rose to 3 hours and 18 minutes for older teens. Many parents expressed fears about exposure to inappropriate content and the dangers posed by online predators. Notably, households in regional areas, single-parent families, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities reported the highest levels of screen time among children.
While parents voiced significant concerns about the negative impacts of social media on their children—32 per cent reported it had a negative effect—teenagers appeared more optimistic. 26 per cent of 16-17-year-olds claimed social media had a positive impact on their lives, with only 8 per cent citing negative consequences. This disconnect between parents and teens highlighted the complex nature of the issue and the need for more comprehensive education on the potential harms of social media.
In addition to privacy and safety concerns, cybersecurity threats such as scam attempts and data privacy risks ranked high among the broader community’s worries, particularly among marginalised groups like the LGBTQIA+ community, individuals with disabilities, and those from non-English-speaking backgrounds. 33 per cent of respondents aged 16 and over reported feeling threatened or intimidated by content or comments on social media.
“In the past, it was easier to pretend that access to smartphones and 24/7 social media wasn’t a seismic shift in a way that our children moved through the world. We could tell ourselves that social media is a superficial sign of the generational divide, the contemporary equivalent of an out-of-touch dad complaining about how much he can’t stand his young child’s music,” South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas explained as he opened the summit. “But this isn’t an option anymore. The results are in. The science is settled. We know for a fact that social media has changed childhood, and it is doing our children harm”.
NSW Premier, Chris Minns used his address to call for action and regulation, emphasising the right we have to control the way we consume and utilise technology. “We do have some control over the incursion of technology in our lives. It is not a one-way street of more technology forever with no restrictions or regulations,” he said. “As individuals, there’s only so much we can do. But as a community, we can confront these challenges together. We are not just consumers of technology—we are citizens in a democracy”.
