Stopping the Brainrot: How do we legislate social media?

Last weekend, Bridgerton had dropped on Netflix, and it occupied the main TV screen in our lounge room, there was AFL on the iPad, and National Premier Leagues soccer on the iPhone.

On my lap was my computer as I caught up on emails in preparation for the new week.

With multiple windows open, Facebook was checked regularly to ensure I didn't miss out on any humorous or witty comments regarding the various games I was watching.

Surely my brain had reached peak load.

At my age, it's not so much of an issue but for our young people, political leaders have turned their minds to the impact of hyperstimulation and the dangers of the social media age.

In response, the Federal Government is implementing a trial of age verification (age assurance) for social media costing about $6.5 million to the budget.

State Premiers have supported the trial and promised to take it further through restricting access to social media platforms with the age range for the ban as low as 13 and as high as 16.

Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese offered, "This is a national issue. We want to make sure that any measures that are put in place are effective, because one of the concerns which is there is that age protocols may be circumvented by users at the moment," he said.

The Opposition Leader, Peter Dutton, also supported the position, "It's difficult to make the case for children under the age of 16 being on social media, especially when we've seen the harmful effects that it can have on our children," he said.

And not to be outdone, our premier, Jeremy Rockliff, offered, ironically, via X (the social media platform formerly known as Twitter), "The recent step by the Federal Government for an age verification trial is a step in the right direction. But it's not enough. We can't afford to sit by while the health, happiness and well-being of our children is at risk," he said.

Unsupervised social media interactions by young people, behaving in a manner that puts them at risk, is a significant societal problem.

However, the challenge remains how to support them in a popular and addictive environment, and how to legislate and enforce such a ban in response.

Banning anything rarely works as a deterrent for young people.

Social media providers and the young people themselves will always find way to circumvent the system including new laws.

Furthermore, social media companies won't simply go away and accept new laws without a fight.

The most obvious recent example is the purveyors of tobacco products who have continued to market their products in the face of legislation and changing public opinion.

And then there is the vape industry, the chemical equivalent of cigarettes, now a booming trade with tobacco stores supplementing income through showcasing electronic products, which appeal to a new generation of risk takers unaware or undeterred by their addictive and cancer-causing properties.

The Federal Government has introduced tough and expansive new laws regarding the importation of vapes. Sadly, companies will find a loophole before we even have time to react from a legislative point of view.

eSafety Commissioner research titled, The digital lives of Aussie Teens 2021, based on a survey of 627 teens aged 12 to 17 in September 2020, found the following:

"Nearly all teens who had a negative experience online engaged in positive online behaviour afterward," it reported.

The commentary around positive interactions remains one of the greatest challenges for legislators because for every opportunity of harm, there is also opportunity for good including overcoming loneliness, exclusion, and a safe space to share concerns.

This is a balancing act for political leaders; attempting to protect young people from predators, bullies, and negative influences without restricting positive online behaviours.

As is often the case, the involvement of parents and guardians in monitoring online behaviour remains paramount.

Earlier this year, I had social media use by young people explained to me.

My parents often used the term 'rot'; "What a load of rot," they would say when describing an untruth or exaggeration.

Fast forward a few generations and now 'rot', short for brainrot, is used to describe a session of social media consumption (scrolling), particularly reels (short vertical videos), to, again, ironically, unwind.

Yet, as its more fulsome term, brainrot, describes "excessive consumption of TikTok content leads to decreased attention spans and mental fatigue."

It's fair to say, as parents, we don't always model the best of behaviours to our offspring.

The truth is, I'll be rewatching Bridgerton's episodes having missed so much due to distractions that are extremely difficult to control.