95bFM Problems with implementing a social media ban
29 May, 2026
Interview by Castor Chacko, adapted by Marlo Schorr-Kon
The government has announced a pause to the development of New Zealand's social media ban policy. The policy would have seen us following suit with Australia, which late last year introduced a ban on social media use for those under the age of 16.
This comes despite a growing amount of evidence that the bans are ineffective, as young people are not only resourceful enough to dodge the ban, but the most significant causes of mental harm and distress usually run much deeper than just social media content.
Director of Wellbeing, System Leadership, Data, and Insights at Te Hiringa Mahara, the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission, Dr. Ella Cullen, told 95bFM's The Wire that the pause is a good idea, as the government should “be waiting and learning from Australia.”
“It's been six months, I think, since the ban in Australia, so we do need to just wait and see what happens, so it was quite good to see that it is on hold.”
Dr. Cullen says what's behind the ban is “a kind of global rise in psychological distress among young people.”
“There is a lot of movement internationally on this, and Australia being the first country to actually implement a ban has definitely been an influencing factor. This is one solution that decision makers are seeing as the way forward.”
However, Cullen says more caution needs to be exercised by governments looking at following in Australia's footsteps. She says that social media is “not the sole cause of youth mental distress,” and that it “acts more like an amplifier of existing offline issues, and it has both benefits and harms.” While many tend to paint social media as the primary cause of youth mental distress, Te Hiringa Mahara believes other factors are more significant.
Dr. Cullen says “social isolation, uncertain futures, and climate change are the things that young people have told us are driving distress, not social media itself.”
In addition, while it is too early to determine the lasting impact of the ban on youth mental health, Dr. Cullen says preliminary data indicates it's “actually not working very well.”
“We know that because we've looked at the research, and it says that these kinds of bans are actually quite easy to circumvent. It actually pushes people to less regulated spaces and can reduce access to support and connection, which is what young people need.”
Instead of a blanket ban, Cullen believes in stronger regulation for social media companies. While young people often cop the blame for the impacts of social media, companies have responsibilities to ensure content is moderated and safe for all audiences. In many cases, young people know what they should and shouldn't be seeing on social media, despite minimal restrictions on the platforms themselves.
Dr. Cullen says access to adequate education, digital literacy, and critical thinking “will also be beneficial for young people to support them when they're navigating online spaces, including resources for parents, whānau and guardians to actually normalise some of those online safety attitudes.”
