Late last year, Australia became the first country in the world to institute a nationwide ban on children younger than 16 having social media accounts.
Six months in, most indications are that the law has largely failed at keeping young teens off the platforms, in a disappointing start to an initiative carefully watched by parents and governments around the world.
But some Australian parents say the real effect of the law may be for the coming cohort of younger kids who were not yet on social media, and who may stay off because of the ban.
Take Naomi Parrish’s 12-year-old son, Ethan, who got a smartphone for Christmas the month the law took effect, and has been trying to persuade his mother ever since to let him download TikTok.
Several times a day, Parrish’s phone will buzz with requests for permission to download the app. He dug out an old white board to write a list of reasons he should be allowed to have it. He wrote two letters pleading his case, decorated them with stickers and left them on the kitchen counter.
