News Articles

Michael Wipfli, a vocal advocate of Australia’s new social media ban for youth under 16, says he understands the frustration some tweens and younger teens have felt since it came into effect — but he is not losing sleep over the hate mail or criticism, including from his kids’ classmates.

While Facebook community groups can be chaotic spaces, well moderated groups can contribute vastly to a township’s ability to connect, a content moderation expert said.

Artificial intelligence platforms are reshaping how Australians encounter news, amplifying global media giants as local journalists, outlets and communities are pushed to the margins, new University of Sydney research has found.  

As more countries look to follow Australia’s lead and introduce social media bans for children, we ask whether Australia’s legislation is working.

Artificial intelligence is leaving Australian news sources “increasingly invisible” as algorithms favour international media giants over local journalism, a new study has found.

As Artificial Intelligence platforms continue to reshape how Australians discover news, a new warning bell’s been sounded. As we know, AI is already seeping into radio news bulletins, via cloned voices and automated scriptwriting and story selection. Now, it’s also amplifying global media giants as local journalists.

Australia’s news diet is being quietly Americanised: a study finds AI news summaries amplify US voices, sideline local journalism and risk hollowing out the country’s media, and with it democracy, according to the author of a Sydney University study.

Australian journalism is largely “invisible” in AI-generated news summaries from Microsoft Copilot, which overwhelmingly favour US or European media, research by the University of Sydney has found.

Australia has become the first country to ban children under sixteen from social media, forcing platforms to block millions of young users overnight. Supporters say the move draws a long-overdue line around online harm while critics feel that it could push teens into riskier digital spaces with less oversight. As legal challenges mount and other countries watch closely, we cover what drove the country to implement this hardline policy on social media.

The Federal government says 4.7 million social media accounts have been deactivated in the first month of its ban on teenagers. It’s the first ban of its kind in the world, and other countries are watching closely.