Staring at Walls: Social Media Ban – Bella Caledonia

I don’t know what was the greater stroke of genius; getting Taylor Swift to do the theme song or releasing Toy Story 5 the week that Sir Keir Starmer announced that the government are enacting a ban restricting children and young people under 16 from being able to use most of the major social media platforms. Hello, marketing win! My highly sensible response to, well, whatever exactly is going on in the wider world just now, was to take my offspring to see it on release day. I owe Pixar a thank you – they delivered an extremely slick fable about the (pretty pedestrian) dangers Disney weans face on social media. The ills in the film included pretending to be someone you’re not, being forced to grow up too fast and not making genuine friends. Helpfully, a plucky cowgirl and a space ranger did a far better job of playing bad cop than I ever could. Back to reality (regrettably) and from Spring 2027, companies including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, X, TikTok and YouTube will be banned from offering services to those under 16-years-old. Why is the government channeling its inner Headteacher on the subject of social media? At the thin
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