| United Kingdom
| general
| ✓ Verified - news.sky.com
'We need external control': Meet the kids backing social media ban
#Social media ban#Under-16s restriction#Spain digital protection#Mental health impact#AI-generated content#European regulation#Digital addiction#Elon Musk controversy
📌 Key Takeaways
Spanish teens support social media ban for under-16s
Government investigating Meta, X, and TikTok over AI-generated child pornography
European countries increasingly restricting children's social media access
Generational divide exists in support for the ban
Experts warn social media platforms are designed to be addictive
📖 Full Retelling
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced a proposed ban on social media for under-16s in Madrid on Thursday, February 26, 2026, citing concerns about mental health, addiction, and exposure to harmful content, as part of a broader effort to make children safer online. The proposal has sparked significant debate, with surprising support coming from many teenagers themselves, including a group of 12-17 year olds at Spain's oldest secondary school who all expressed approval for the restrictions. These young people cited concerns about social media addiction, negative impacts on academic performance, and harmful content affecting mental health, particularly regarding body image and eating disorders among teenage girls. The government is also taking additional steps by asking prosecutors to investigate potential crimes committed by Meta, X and TikTok in connection with AI-generated child pornography, following the discovery of three million nude AI-generated images on X in just 11 days. The move places Spain among several European countries reconsidering children's relationship with social media, following Australia's lead last year, with France planning a similar ban for under-15s and the UK promising enhanced online safety measures for young people.
🏷️ Themes
Youth Mental Health, Digital Regulation, Internet Safety, Government Intervention
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Researchers from fields like psychology, sociology, anthropology, and medicine have studied the relationship between digital media use and mental health since the mid-1990s, following the rise of the World Wide Web and text messaging. Much research has focused on patterns of excessive use, often cal...
Eyewitness Eyewitness Is social media messing up our kids? Spain's battle against doomscrolling schoolchildren Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called social media the digital "Wild West" and said the proposed under-16s ban is part of a raft of measures aimed at making children safer online. The move has sparked anger from Elon Musk. Siobhan Robbins Europe correspondent @SiobhanRobbins Thursday 26 February 2026 02:14, UK 4:54 Share Is social media messing up kids? Why you can trust Sky News Is social media messing up our kids? A growing number of European countries seem to think it's causing a problem, as more and more consider bans or restrictions. In an effort to get children to log off screens and into real life, Spain plans to ban under-16s from social media platforms. For many adults, it seems to make sense, but how do young people feel about losing access? "I think as a society we have got to a point that we have to do something about it, and I think a ban is the best option," 16-year-old Africa tells me. I've come to meet a group of 12- to 17-year-olds at Spain's oldest secondary school in Madrid. Much to my surprise, all of them support the restriction. "I think that as long as private companies own these apps, there won't be really positive things because the only thing that matters [to them] is that you spend more time in the app and for them to make more money," 14-year-old Max explains. Goodbye apps, hello school success Like several of the other boys in the group, he said he has struggled in the past with social media addiction, spending hours doomscrolling at the expense of going out with friends. It's a problem that's also troubled 12-year-old Theo, the youngest in the group. "I was five or six hours a day watching a screen and I failed three or four exams," he said. "My parents took off all those things and then I started to get good marks." Several of the girls in the group also have concerns about the impact of social media on their peers' ment...
