The Challenge
Around the world, the dominoes are starting to fall on social media. It started in Australia with the ban on social media for Under 16s coming into effect last year and is racheting up this year with Spain following suit and a landmark ruling in LA that Meta / YouTube have created apps that are addictive. In the UK, the government opened a consultation in March on how to reduce the harms of social media for children, but parents and public opinion are well ahead of policymakers. Mumsnet, the leading online network for parents in the UK, have been historically vocal about their support for a ban, with 83% of parents on their platform supporting a ban for Under 16s. They want to spark a national conversation and encourage individuals to write to their local MPs in support.
The Solution
Mumsnet reframed the issue of child social media addiciton to encourage an Under 16s social media ban from the government. For parents this is a health crisis, so Mumsnet positioned the dangers of social media in the format of a smoking health-warning label, to compel parents to take action and write to their MP. The work sparked a national conversation that saw Mumsnet discussing their phone warning boxes on the BBC, and the shadow health secretary responding to the campaign. Mumsnet moved forward the conversation around social media protections and stepped up for the 83% of parents on their platform that support an Under 16 ban.
