The social media ban imposed on people under the age of 16 in Australia due to the negative effects of social media on young people has led to similar discussions in Turkey. A report prepared by the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure highlighted the harmful effects of social media on children and young people. The report stated that social media negatively affects psychological and physiological health, increases the tendency to violence, and creates a feeling of disconnection and loneliness in social relations. It was also stated that social media increases conflicts within the family and that its uncontrolled and unlimited use causes addiction and alienation from family members.
“WE ARE DISCUSSING”
Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloğlu stated in a statement he gave last week that the issue is on their agenda and said, “There is no decision yet on banning social media platforms under the age of 13, we are discussing it. “My personal approach is that the age limit on social media is 16,” he said.
Türkiye’S AVERAGE EXCEEDED THE WORLD’S AVERAGE
According to the data obtained from the report, 87 percent of the population in Turkey, i.e. 75 million people, use social media. While the average daily use of social media in the world is 6.5 hours, in Turkey the average is 7 hours. 77 percent of the population in Turkey uses at least one social media platform. The number of active users is 57.5 million. The application with the highest number of users is Instagram with 58.4 million. This is followed by YouTube with 58.1 million, WhatsApp with 52 million, TikTok with 37.5 million, Facebook with 34.5 million, X with 21.7 million, and Linkedin with 17 million users.
BANNED IN MANY COUNTRIES
All social media, movie, video and game sites are banned on the work phones of civil servants in France and on devices used for work in the Netherlands. More than half of the states in the US and the UK have banned TikTok from public devices. While Norway banned TikTok and Telegram on devices used for work, the Swedish Ministry of Defense banned the use of TikTok by personnel. While Belgium and Denmark banned TikTok, Canada pointed out that it was an unacceptable risk.