Age limit for social media: "Less bullying, more concentration"
As social media platforms are not doing enough to protect minors, Federal Minister of Justice Hubig is also in favor of age verification and age limits.
(Image: Shutterstock.com/ Kaspars Grinvalds)
The new Federal Minister of Justice and former Minister of Education of Rhineland-Palatinate, Stefanie Hubig (SPD), supports the new Federal Minister of Education, Karin Prien (CDU), in her efforts to protect children and young people more strongly from the negative effects of social media and digital content in future. Hubig told dpa: "Children and young people need protection instead of pressure to express themselves." This should be achieved through a clear age limit and corresponding age verification for social media offerings.
Revise youth media protection
In order for children and young people to grow up without stress and bullying, clear rules are needed for the use of social media, said Hubig. Initial experience in other countries suggests that such restrictions have a positive effect on adolescents in schools. There is then "less bullying, more concentration, more social interaction".
Federal Education and Family Minister Prien has already spoken out several times in favor of introducing a statutory age check. At the presentation of jugendschutz.net's annual report, at which Prien also spoke, experts explained that the youth protection measures that platforms such as Instagram, Tiktok and Snapchat have introduced so far are hardly effective. They therefore rely on a mix of measures that enable both digital protection and digital participation. Among other things, the federal states responsible for the protection of minors in the media are now working on a revision of the Interstate Treaty on the Protection of Minors in the Media to include mandatory age verification for providers.
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Whether the plans of the state chancelleries are compatible with European law is, however, controversial. However, as the issue is now also being discussed with more pressure at EU level, there could soon be more backing from this side. Just last week, Spain, France and Greece advocated an EU-wide ban on social media for children under the age of 16 or 15 at the EU Digital Ministers' Conference in Luxembourg. Strict age controls would have to be introduced in all 27 EU countries in order to enforce a ban.
Hubig believes that a clear and, above all, effective age limit for the use of social media would protect children's privacy and promote healthy development. Clear rules could also make things easier for parents, as some discussions about social media could be avoided.
(kbe)
