Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have released a statement through their Archewell Foundation in response to Australia’s ban on social media for under-16s. The pair praised it as a safeguard but criticized it for not addressing deeper issues of engineering design and business incentives. They called it a “courageous” decision aimed at protecting children and suggested the move “doesn’t address the underlying problem”.
In a Dec. 10 press release, the Archewell Foundation said, “This bold, decisive step to protect children at a critical time in their development sends a strong message that children’s minds are not a commodity to be exploited. It buys young people valuable time back in their childhood, but it does not address the fundamental problem we all still face with social media platforms.”
In a statement suggesting that children have no right to privacy and their safety is at risk, the couple added: “A ban is an effective measure to stop imminent harm, but ultimately it only works as a Band-Aid that does not address the broken design of technology and the exploitative business incentives that require us to protect young people in the first place.”
Advocates for online safety and the dangers of social media believe that children are harmed by “exploitative commercial incentives” because algorithms are designed to maximize engagement and the bill would further “create new opportunities for their (children’s) lives to be monitored.”
The couple argued that big tech should consider the welfare of young people instead of just growth. In their message, Harry and Meghan call on major technology platforms to take responsibility for their actions: “We look forward to taking the next step in holding technology accountable for its design choices and hope that new technology leaders learn from their failure to prioritize the well-being of young people.”
This recent legislation makes Australia the first country in the world to introduce national age limits for social media. With 10 prominent social media platforms under surveillance, Australian authorities on Thursday requested a report on the number of accounts deactivated since the ban took effect.
Facebook, Instagram, Kick, Reddit, Snapchat, Threads, TikTok, X, YouTube and Twitch are the platforms under scrutiny that will face hefty fines of up to $49.5 million for violating the restrictions starting December 10.
“Today the eSafety Commissioner will write to all 10 platforms that are considered age-restricted social media platforms and ask them… what was your number of under 16 accounts on December 9; what are your numbers today on December 11?” AP quoted Australian Communications Minister Anika Wells as saying.
