The Australian government introduced a suite of laws to parliament this week aimed at cracking down on big tech companies. Proposed reforms include an algorithm switch that would force social media platforms to allow users to turn off recommended content.
The Digital Duty of Care bill would require online services to ensure a safe online environment by imposing a legal duty of care. Breaches of these laws could attract fines of up to A$100m.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stated, "This is not about giving government control, it is about giving people control." Albanese added, "If people want to doom scroll… that's fine, that's up to them."
Anika Wells noted that the digital duty of care addresses many concerns regarding the social media minimum age law because it is broader, capturing all online services and shifting responsibility from victims to big tech operators who profit from Australian users. Meta, Snap, TikTok, X and Google declined requests for comment on the legislation.
The Trump administration stated the reforms threaten free speech. Research indicates that social media use triggers brain responses similar to substance addiction and gambling.
Studies also found that algorithms serve content which harms mental health and spreads disinformation while increasing polarisation. Chanel Contos, who founded the Teach Us Consent website in 2021, observed that platforms promote outrageous content to invoke strong emotions like anger, fear, desire, lust or insecurity to keep users scrolling.
Contos also helped reform sexual consent education standards in Australia. Varsha Yajman joined social media at age 13 and is now 24 years old.
Yajman stated, "I was like, 'I don't need to eat. I can just watch other people eat'." Flynn Martin, who was 20 years old when he began experiencing algorithmic influence, was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
Martin was pulled from the manosphere after a period of psychosis and a hospital stay. Martin said, "You find yourself in like a bit of an echo chamber... It's easy to get swept up in that."
He further explained, "I really bought into the idea we were living in this matrix, we had this really negative system that was designed against you. And the only way to break out of it was becoming this alpha male character." Martin went viral in Australia for two videos, the first being a rant about whether it was acceptable to be a straight white male, and the second a criticism of a date for her frozen yoghurt order.
Adam Mosseri noted that people often conflate colloquial uses of the word 'addicted' with clinical addiction.
Anthony Albanese said, "This is not about giving government control, it is about giving people control."
Anthony Albanese
