What function does YouTube play within the lives of Australian households with youngsters? Because the federal authorities plans to incorporate YouTube in its forthcoming ban on social media accounts for youngsters underneath the age of 16, Guardian readers responded to a name out about their very own youngsters’ use of the platform and what they considered the ban.
That is what they instructed us.
‘Merely inconceivable to watch’
Dad and mom steadily reported they have been proscribing their youngsters’s use to shared areas by co-watching or via parental controls. However many stated this was time-intensive and practically inconceivable to take care of and have been involved about what content material was slipping underneath their radar.
“We use YouTube Children and all the time test what they watch earlier than we allow them to watch something on there. We do that as a result of YouTube can’t be trusted – the algorithm leads you in a short time down bizarre or regarding rabbit holes and the messaging in a video is commonly refined and arduous to display screen as a dad or mum with out pre-watching every part (which isn’t sensible).
“The ultimate cause [we restrict our children’s use] is due to my very own expertise with YouTube as an grownup. I presently really feel like I’m having to actively battle in opposition to the algorithm taking me in course I don’t wish to go. I watch one video of a gel blaster, and I get 100 movies of People taking pictures weapons. One video of a bodybuilder within the gymnasium and I get 100 scantily clad health fashions … If I’ve to battle this difficult, YouTube would do the identical with my youngsters.”
Marty, father of two youngsters underneath 9, Brisbane
“Earlier than we eliminated it, our kids would watch YouTube for hours. We eliminated it as a result of they might get caught in gratification loops and leap from one video to the following.
“I’ve loved watching some movies with our kids. Some are intelligent and really humorous. However finally it’s too tough to control, filter content material and ensure they’re not being uncovered to probably dangerous content material. Now we have three boys and we’re conscious that many movies include specific and implicit attitudes that younger boys may be influenced by with regards to girls, for instance.”
Mother or father of three youngsters who’re 13, 11 and 6 years outdated, Adelaide
“YouTube is the bane of our existence – we want it by no means existed. Our son locks himself in his room and for the latest college holidays spent nearly the whole two weeks on YouTube and gaming. We’ve bought no concept what dangerous content material he’s seen as there all the time appears to be a loophole to web monitoring software program.”
Dan, dad or mum of a 15-year-old and a 12-year-old, Melbourne
“YouTube supplies subsequent to no helpful parental controls over content material and the few measures they do have are subsequent to ineffective (having gone via the entire thing very not too long ago). Whereas to this point we have now been fortunate in that [our son’s] moderately slender focus has saved his feed comparatively freed from lower than superb content material, we’re all the time involved that he shall be served up one thing completely inappropriate.”
Gerard, father of a 13-year-old, Canberra
“There isn’t any management over what they see. Even with strict settings on YouTube youngsters, my baby was robotically performed horrific content material disguised as child’s TV.”
Peter, father of three youngsters who’re 2, 4 and 6 years outdated, Sydney
“It’s merely inconceivable to watch the content material that’s being considered however even via occasional glances on the feed I can inform that my daughter is being uncovered to a whole lot of materials with magnificence/physique picture stereotypes, whereas my son’s feed tends to be extra larrikin/sport oriented. I’m additionally left with the impression that the content material is rife with misinformation.”
Richard, dad or mum of a 10-year-old and a 13-year-old, Hobart
“My youngsters are youngsters and by that definition are simply swayed by brilliant lights and dopamine-releasing repetitive reward programming. My points with YouTube is that it’s used as a form of poker machine to earn a living off of our in-built thirst for dopamine and all of us have been sucked in. I would favor extra controls to keep away from the garbage whereas benefiting from the superb content material obtainable however alas the fact is that the academic stuff will not be the cash maker, the mind draining, excessive vitality, vibrant trope is the center of what runs this behemoth.”
Monique, dad or mum of an 8-year-old and an 11-year-old, Bell Put up Hill
‘They’ll watch it for hours with out breaks’
From fleeting consideration spans and hours wasted to issues in regards to the content material that may slip underneath the radar of youngsters’s YouTube feeds, many mother and father felt the YouTube algorithm inspired extreme use and provided probably dangerous content material.
“I do fear how brief content material impacts their capability to concentrate and I discover {that a} TV or a film undoubtedly doesn’t maintain their consideration for as lengthy. Now we have to present a warning earlier than we flip it off to handle the transition away from screens. Among the content material definitely appears senseless (like my daughter watching one other baby taking part in with dolls) however additionally they recurrently inform me fascinating details and information they’ve discovered on YouTube.”
Mother or father of a 3-year-old and a 5-year-old, Sydney
“The waste of time it actively cultivates via the algorithm, there’s no warning as to what is going to pop up subsequent, it appears to get weirder and extra excessive the longer you watch it. I’ve no religion within the tech corporations caring in regards to the wellbeing of youngsters. I believe they actively create algorithms which can be dangerous in function to get eyeballs for longer.”
Alicia, dad or mum of an 8-year-old and a 12-year-old, Colonel Mild Gardens
“If left to observe YouTube by themselves, as they’ve often at associates’ homes, it’s all the time puerile, short-attention-span mashup [of] garbage or scary movies equivalent to [the horror video game] Poppy Playtime, and so on. Our youngest watched three hours of this at a buddy’s home a number of years in the past and had nightmares for months.
I’m very supportive of the academic content material in YouTube, however regardless of having free entry to this the youngsters simply don’t appear to decide on to observe it and solely watch garbage.”
Damien, father of a 9-year-old and a 12-year-old, Sydney
“It’s has been (at occasions) irritating because of YouTube being glad to reveal our youngsters to inappropriate content material. Shorts is diabolical. But it surely has gotten higher as soon as we might establish our youngsters as YouTube customers.”
Matt, father of a 16-year-old and an 11-year-old, Ballarat
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“I educate ethics at a neighborhood public college and in a piece the place we requested a couple of dream job about half the youngsters stated they needed to be gamer YouTubers, which is a priority, though older age teams appear to develop out of this.
“I’m much less involved about ‘inappropriate content material’ as I’m about utterly worthless content material, and youngsters don’t have the flexibility to discern the distinction.”
Mother or father of a 15, 13 and 10-year-old, Sydney
“It’s a real habit, together with full-on tantrums when it’s restricted.”
Mother or father of a 16-year-old, Brisbane, Queensland
“They’ll watch it for hours with out breaks. So the rule we have now now’s one hour a day. Particularly for my 7-year-old who would instantly soften down and cry when it was turned off. That was a really large signal that it was not creating optimistic suggestions to him.
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“My 12-year-old has higher governance, however has on events been frightened by movies which have come up showing to be for teenagers, however been disturbing as a substitute … We actually hate YouTube, although, and want it wasn’t there for us to take care of.”
Mother or father of three youngsters who’re 7, 10 and 12 years outdated, Harrisdale
“He was in a position watch what he needed, however he would solely watch shorts. We discovered that watching these shorts on a regular basis was effecting his temper. Since we restrict his YouTube to extra academic stuff, we have now discovered his temper to be much more steady.”
Kevin, father of a 13-year-old, Burua
‘He discovered to crochet from YouTube’
Many mother and father cited big academic advantages from YouTube, from supporting area of interest hobbies to permitting youngsters a artistic outlet as content material creators themselves.
“I’m involved in regards to the stage of unfiltered content material he might simply be uncovered to if he strayed off the trail, however I’m really extra involved about the opportunity of him shedding entry to it. He discovered crochet from YouTube, we each discovered about intersectional feminism and we’re about to collectively discover ways to weatherproof our flat.”
Single dad or mum to a teenage son, ACT
“We use YouTube for training (eg Ms Rachel, how issues are made, volcanoes, David Attenborough content material), leisure (Puffing Billy movies, music movies eg Teeny Tiny Stevies). I’m a music trainer and use YouTube on daily basis (on-line footage of musical performances, tutorial movies, different college students taking part in college students items, skilled recordings of band items and so on). [YouTube is] one of the best training platform within the historical past of civilisation!!!”
Mother or father to a 2-year-old and a 5-year-old, Melbourne
“Each my sons 11 and 14 recurrently use YouTube for info and gaming movies. My eldest has an account the place he makes movies about his ant colonies. He has about 100 followers, different youngsters who’re into ants. I don’t [support the ban]. Many youngsters are simply sharing their information and passions which is wholesome.”
Mother or father of a 11-year-old and a 14-year-old, Sydney
“Our son makes use of YouTube each day for his important passion, which is stop-motion filming with Lego setups. He spends many hours on stunning video clips, edits them and uploads the ultimate product to YouTube the place he has followers on his personal channel. The entire thing is a very artistic, productive passion, and YouTube performs a central half in it.”
Dan Arno, father of an 11-year-old son, Munich
‘If these corporations is not going to regulate themselves then one thing needs to be executed’
Dad and mom had a various vary of views on whether or not or not a ban on under-16s from having their very own YouTube accounts is fascinating or efficient, citing issues about privateness within the proposed legislation alongside a frustration that folks have been unable to guard their youngsters from dangerous or extreme use with out extra regulation.
“I don’t help the present laws in any respect. It needs to be biased towards making the tech corporations change their content material insurance policies, not require extra [personal identification] be uploaded to the web for age verification functions.”
Mother or father of a 12-year-old and a 15-year-old, Brisbane
“Now I must put my very own YouTube entry into restricted mode to present to them entry, or create a pretend account, which I don’t wish to do. My associate and I’ll determine what my youngsters watch and what social media they’ve entry to. That is simply extra boomers and [members of] gen X making choices about, and interfering with, issues which can be none of their enterprise.”
Mother or father of two youngsters, Western Sydney
“Digital platforms and tech bros make billions out of content material creators’ violent delinquent materials and it’s watched time and again by impressionable youngsters. Dad and mom wrestle to police this and the one winners are the content material creators and the digi-tech billionaire platform homeowners.”
Mother or father of a 16-year-old son, Windsor
“Their accounts give us a historical past of what has been watched. [A ban is] unenforceable. It’s a breach of my privateness to must register myself.”
Tim, dad or mum of two youngsters, Blackburn
“100% [I support the ban]. The tech corporations, regardless of their protestations, have confirmed themselves, again and again, to have little to little interest in making a protected setting for teenagers.”
Gerard, father of a 13-year-old son, Canberra
“I hem and haw about it. I’m certain that the ban shall be simply breached by the under-16s who’re decided. However I additionally assume that it’s, at the very least, some kind of proactive technique to try to halt youngsters and younger teenagers from viewing inappropriate materials.”
Mother or father of a 5-year-old son, Adelaide