70 m. ago Australia news live: PM says ‘enough is enough’ as social media ban comes into effect; Gina Rinehart’s helipad plan rejected

Follow the latest updates liveSocial media ban: some platforms still allowing 14-year-olds as landmark ruling comes into forceCallout: How is Australia’s social media ban affecting you and your family?Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastInman Grant says getting ‘the most powerful, rich companies’ to comply was always going to be messyInman Grant said she expects kids to experience massive changes as the social media ban sticks around. The eSafety commissioner added that some social media companies were more difficult to work with than others during the rollout of the ban, telling ABC News:To the extent that there are seven stages of grief, we have seen some be very accepting, some in denial, some are quite angry.I guess that shows the character of the company and how they’re taking this. Continue reading...

Politics

89 m. ago Albanese is taking away social media for children but hanging out mistletoe for AI. It’s magical thinking | Peter Lewis

The PM won big by convincing us we could avoid the madness of Donald Trump’s new world order but Labor’s feeble AI plan embeds Australia deeply in its orbitGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastI’m blaming Santa. As 2025 reaches its inevitable endgame, I can’t help thinking we have all become gullible children enthralled by the promise of tech cornucopia, refusing to see the folds in our logic because deep down we don’t want to break the magic.While the federal government prepares to take the toys off the children with its world-first social media ban, it is hanging out the stockings for the self-same tech overlords to fill with new goodies via its light-touch National AI Plan. Continue reading...

Politics

2 h. ago Australia news live: social media ban comes into effect; apps not included in banned list surge on app stores

Follow the latest updates liveCallout: How is Australia’s social media ban affecting you and your family?Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastInman Grant says getting ‘the most powerful, rich companies’ to comply was always going to be messyInman Grant said she expects kids to experience massive changes as the social media ban sticks around. The eSafety commissioner added that some social media companies were more difficult to work with than others during the rollout of the ban, telling ABC News:To the extent that there are seven stages of grief, we have seen some be very accepting, some in denial, some are quite angry.I guess that shows the character of the company and how they’re taking this. Continue reading...

Events

2 h. ago Are Australian kids breaking the law if they sneak onto social media? – video

Does Australia’s social media ban mean kids aged under 16 will get in legal trouble for circumventing the ban? Will parents get in trouble for letting their kids use banned social media sites? There is a lot of misinformation about how the world-first ban will actually work. So whether you’re a parent of a child, or a child watching this on a VPN, Guardian Australia’s Matilda Boseley is here to clear up what the social media ban meansAustralian social media ban explained: everything you need to knowHow is Australia’s social media ban affecting you and your family? Continue reading...

Politics

9 h. ago Reddit adds safety features for teens everywhere after Australia social media ban

The new Australian law and the new safety features on Reddit go into effect December 10

Politics

12 h. ago Why Gen Z’s new ‘posting zero’ trend could be more effective than Australia’s social media ban

As Australia pulls the plug on social media for under-16s, Lydia Spencer-Elliott speaks to teenagers about how they really feel about the ban – and discovers why viewing social media as more boring than dangerous might be more effective

Politics

15 h. ago Australia’s social media ban has begun. Here are four ways to stay connected

Experts say the ban will create disruption, but it won’t end friendships, creativity, identity exploration, or culture

Politics

16 h. ago Here’s what young people actually think about the social media ban

A team of 14 leading researchers interviewed 86 young people, aged between 12 and 15, ahead of the ban

Politics

17 h. ago Australia PM tells teens to ‘read a book and stop scrolling’ as social media ban comes into effect

New law forces major platforms to block under-16s as global attention turns to Australia’s experiment

Politics

61 h. ago How Australia became the testing ground for a social media ban for young people

From nascent policy idea in one state to passing federal parliament in just days, it’s been a whirlwind journey for the world-first legislation that will take effect from 10 DecemberIn late 2023, the South Australian premier’s wife put down a book she had been reading. It was Jonathan Haidt’s The Anxious Generation.“[She] said to me you better bloody do something about this ... and then we got to work,” Peter Malinauskas later recalled in an ABC interview. Continue reading...

Politics

2 d. ago LIVE Australia declares disaster status as bushfires raze towns across entire state

Australia declares disaster status as 91 bushfires raze regions with 20 currently out-of-control

Events

3 d. ago ‘Everyone will miss the socialising – but it’s also a relief’: five young teens on Australia’s social media ban

As the under-16s social media ban looms, Guardian Australia speaks to five 13 to 15-year-olds about what they will miss, and what government should be doing insteadAustralia’s world-first social media ban for under-16s will begin in just a few days. Malaysia, Denmark and Norway are to follow suit and the European Union last week passed a resolution to adopt similar restrictions. As the world watches on, millions of Australian adolescents and their parents are wondering just what will actually change come 10 December.Concerns around the negative impact social media use can have on the wellbeing of young people have been around since the quaint days of Myspace – long before those to be affected by the ban were even born.Sign up for a weekly email featuring our best reads Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Teens hoping to get around Australia’s social media ban are rushing to smaller apps. Where are they going?

As Meta begins deleting accounts and the deadline looms, children have already begun to flock to platforms not included in the banned list, like Coverstar, Lemon8, Yope and RednoteAustralia social media ban explained: everything you need to knowGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAs Australia prepares to block under-16s from accessing 10 of its largest social media platforms, less prominent companies have begun courting the teen market – in some cases paying underaged influencers to promote them.One teenaged TikTok influencer said in a paid “collab” video for the app Coverstar: “The social media ban is fast approaching, but I found the new cool app we can all move to.” Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Believe, belong, become, boring, bizarre: Brisbane Olympics motto panned as ‘lazy and weirdly evangelical’

Advertising expert questions origins of slogan selected by Games organisers who hail its ‘significant symbolism’Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastIf you typed the words “believe, belong and become” into a Google video search on Thursday morning, the first return may have been a sermon by TJ Mauldin, the lead pastor of the First Baptist church of Tifton, Georgia.Directly below the bearded and blue-jeaned pastor’s video under that alliterative banner, you may have clicked through to a sermon by West Florida Baptist church’s Mike Brown, who had those three b-words emblazoned on a snug-fitting black T-shirt. Continue reading...

Sport

6 d. ago Heatwave warning for large parts of Australia as temperatures expected to reach low 40s

New South Wales south coast faces highest heatwave category, with extreme temperatures forecast elsewhere, including in Western Australia and the NTFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastCommunities across large parts of Australia have been urged to take precautions as temperatures begin to soar ahead of severe and extreme heatwave conditions, with parts of western Sydney expected to reach the low 40s by Saturday.The Bureau of Meteorology has issued heatwave warnings in New South Wales, Western Australia and the Northern Territory, with an extreme warning in place on the NSW south coast – indicating the highest level of risk. Continue reading...

Events

6 d. ago Social media ban: Instagram and Facebook begin shutting down under

Ban due to take effect next week, but Meta has started deactivating accounts alreadyAustralia social media ban explained: everything you need to knowFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastFacebook and Instagram began shutting down half a million accounts of users under 16 years old on Thursday as the deadline for Australia’s social media ban looms.The under-16s social media ban is due to take effect from 10 December, but Meta alerted users last month that it would begin shutting down accounts from 4 December.Do you know more? Email josh.taylor@theguardian.com Continue reading...

Technology

6 d. ago Australia to ban under 16s from social media with fines up to £24m

The regulator said courts could impose maximum penalties for repeated violations.

Economics

6 d. ago Australia’s social media ban explained and what it means for the UK

Australia has passed world-first legislation banning children under the age of 16 from using social media. But what does this mean for the UK? Will bans come into place? Here are the essential facts

Politics

6 d. ago Australia's under 16 social media ban sparks debate as users call for UK to do the same

As Australia's social media ban for under 16s looms, users have shared mixed reactions, but could the UK follow suit and ban young people from using popular social media apps too?

Politics

7 d. ago Australia social media ban: when is it, how will it work and what apps are being banned for under

Will the ban be delayed or postponed, and how will age verification work? Platforms will need to deactivate accounts for users under 16 and stop teens from making accounts until they are that age, or face fines of up to $50m. Here’s everything you need to knowGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAustralia’s world-first social media ban for children under the age of 16 is just a week away.The tech platforms – large and small – are working on functionality that will kick off existing under-16 account holders and prevent any new ones from signing up. Continue reading...

Events