Governing attention economy

WAVE OF SOCIAL MEDIA CURBS FORCES SOCIETIES TO CONFRONT DILEMMA ON AUTONOMY OF YOUNG PEOPLE

- SIDDHARTH PAI Technology consultant & venture capitalist By invitation

OVER THE PAST decade, a striking policy trend has gathered momentum across continents: governments moving to restrict or even ban children and teenagers from social media platforms.

What was once a conversation confined to anxious parents and school counsellors has become a legislative priority in capitals around the world. Lawmakers are responding to mounting concerns about screen addiction, online harms, and deteriorating adolescent mental health. The impulse to intervene reflects a deeper unease about how rapidly evolving digital ecosystems are shaping young minds, often in ways that families and institutions struggle to supervise.

Some of the most assertive measures have emerged in China, where authorities have imposed strict time limits on minors’ online gaming and required real name verification for digital services. While these rules do not constitute a blanket social media ban, they signal a willingness to engineer behavioural outcomes through centralised control. The European Union, through its Digital Services Act, obliges major platforms to evaluate systemic risks to children. France has passed legislation requiring parental consent for users under a certain age and has debated technical systems to verify compliance. The UK has strengthened online safety obligations for platforms, compelling them to assess and mitigate risks to minors. Across the Atlantic, the US has seen a surge of state-level proposals that would raise minimum age requirements or mandate parental approval, though federal legislation remains fragmented. Australia has conducted age assurance trials, while Norway and South Korea have examined tighter youth protections. In India, regulators have floated stronger age verification norms.

Outright prohibitions that categorically exclude teenagers from social media remain rare. Most jurisdictions instead rely on age thresholds, consent mechanisms, or enhanced safety standards.