Even a 2023 recommendation by the U.S. surgeon general to put health warnings on social media, blaming it for what he called a teenage mental health crisis, could not help lawmakers from Florida to France navigate resistance on grounds of free speech,

Since Meta META.O whistleblower Frances Haugen aired internal emails in 2021 showing the tech giant knew of social media's mental health impacts on teenagers, world leaders have agonised over how to curb the technology's addictive pull on young minds.

Australia has been at loggerheads with the mostly U.S.-domiciled tech giants for years. It was the first country to make social media platforms pay media outlets royalties for sha

The Australian Senate has passed a social media ban for young children that will soon become a world-first law

Jim Steyer and Andrew Przybylski join The Lead

Australia's lawmakers have voted to ban those under the age of 16 from using social media—even if their parents are okay with it. On Friday morning, Australia’s house of representatives approved the bill with bipartisan support,

The world's first social media ban for children under 16 was hailed Australia's Prime Minister, but critics said it does nothing to address harmful content existing on the internet, saying children "absolutely will bypass it".