- 15 ore fa
Un divieto sui social media può proteggere i bambini dalla violenza e dal bullismo online?
Nella puntata di questa settimana di The Ring, gli eurodeputati Axel Voss (PPE) e Christel Schaldemose (socialisti) si confrontano in un dibattito approfondito sulla bontà o meno del divieto di utilizzo dei social media per i minori di 16 anni.
ALTRE INFORMAZIONI : http://it.euronews.com/2026/02/06/un-divieto-sui-social-media-puo-proteggere-i-bambini-dalla-violenza-e-dal-bullismo-online
Abbonati, euronews è disponibile in 12 lingue.
Nella puntata di questa settimana di The Ring, gli eurodeputati Axel Voss (PPE) e Christel Schaldemose (socialisti) si confrontano in un dibattito approfondito sulla bontà o meno del divieto di utilizzo dei social media per i minori di 16 anni.
ALTRE INFORMAZIONI : http://it.euronews.com/2026/02/06/un-divieto-sui-social-media-puo-proteggere-i-bambini-dalla-violenza-e-dal-bullismo-online
Abbonati, euronews è disponibile in 12 lingue.
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00:00Hello there and welcome to The Ring, Uri News' debate show from the European Parliament here
00:13in Brussels where elected members of the European Parliament go head to head on the big issues on
00:20their desks. This week, should all EU countries ban social media for under 16s? Is social media
00:28rewiring children's brains on our Spain, France and Denmark leading the way? Luis Albertus sets the scene.
00:39As children in Europe are growing up in an increasingly digital world,
00:43the EU faces a fundamental question. How should it protect children online?
00:50The debate isn't just about screen time. It's about deciding how far the EU laws should go
00:56and what kind of digital Europe we're building for our children. Some call for EU-wide rules,
01:03age limits, platform accountability and stricture safeguards to protect children from harmful
01:08content and addictive design such as infinite scrolling. Others warn that heavy-handed regulation
01:16risks overreach, infringes on national sovereignty and could limit children's digital rights and freedoms.
01:21Can Brussels set standards that both protect and empower Europe's children? Will political
01:28divisions prevent the EU from taking decisive action? The answer may shape the digital lives of a
01:34generation that has never lived offline. The questions that we have for our contenders,
01:43let's meet them.
01:44Christel Schaldemose, a Danish MEP and a member of the Socialist and Democrats group. She's a vice
01:51president of the European parliament and a long-standing member of the Committee on the
01:55Internal Market and Consumer Protection. Before entering European politics, she was the secretary
02:00general of the Danish Adult Education Council. She's best known as the lead rapporteur for the EU's
02:05Digital Services Act, which aims to make online platforms more accountable for illegal and harmful content.
02:12What is illegal offline must also be illegal online, she said.
02:17Axel Voss, a German MEP and a member of the European People's Party. He is a long-standing member
02:23of the Committee on Legal Affairs. Before entering the European parliament, he worked as a lawyer and
02:28legal advisor. He's best known as the parliament's lead rapporteur on the EU copyright directive,
02:33including the rules on online platforms' responsibility for copyrighted content.
02:37We need to stand up against fake news and we cannot accept for social media platforms
02:43to become a legal vacuum, he said.
02:45Christel Schaldemose and Axel Voss, welcome to The Ring.
02:51Thank you.
02:52The aim here is to give our viewers a real taste of European Parliament debates and voting sessions,
02:57so I hope you feel right at home. Christel, let's start with you, because 483 MEPs voted in favour
03:04of more ambitious EU action to protect minors online, including an EU-wide minimum age of 16 for
03:12accessing social media. You were one of them. Give us your reasons why.
03:15I would prefer that it was not necessary. But the thing is that the platforms,
03:19the social media we know today, they are honestly not fit for children and young people.
03:25They are faced with murder, suicide, violence, they're being bullied. And if that's not the case,
03:32then more than half of the content is also commercialized. So I don't think that that environment
03:38is fit for our children. And since the platforms, they do not do enough themselves to protect our
03:44kids against it. I think that the next step must be to make a ban so that we can make sure that our
03:51kids are protected. I prefer them to be digital, our kids, because that's the future. But we need to
03:57protect our kids better.
03:57To support a blanket ban. Axel Voss, 92 MEPs voted against this non-binding report and 86 abstained.
04:05Now you voted in favor of it, but you're against this idea of a ban on social media for the under-16s.
04:11Give us your reasons why. Yes. So exclusion does not mean really protection. And this is something
04:19where I would say we need to go beyond this first step, what we have agreed on. And still,
04:26minors can circumvent the ban easily and just taking the wrong age. We should more focus on the content and
04:35the platform instead of the age. Is that not a valid point, Crystal? Because of course,
04:41you know, we have bans when it comes to smoking and accessing alcohol. You could be asked for your
04:46ID, but you know, minors always get away around that. Yeah, but not all of them. And we are signalizing
04:52to the kids and young people what we think is acceptable and what is not. But I also think that what
04:58we do here, if we could make a pan-European ban on entering social media before the age of 16,
05:05is also for the platforms. Because they could have prevented kids from meeting this content,
05:10but they're not doing enough. And since they're not doing enough, we need to do something. So yes,
05:14you can always bypass, but not for the big numbers. And we are sending a signal to the young people and
05:22kids that we don't think that what is online and what is on there is good. And can I add,
05:27because actually, I think that you're right when it comes to a lot of content, it would be better.
05:32But on the other hand, then we are also faced with discussions about are we compromising freedom
05:38of speech is if we as politicians say what we allow and what we're not allowed to be online. So I think
05:45the best way, the easiest way to protect is to make a full blown ban. Crystal has a point there.
05:51The big companies, the big tech companies are not listening or taking Brussels and the regulators
05:57seriously. No, that's why we should focus on this platform and saying what is correct and what is
06:03not correct. So, and also focusing on the content, we need to give them a guideline, what is right and
06:10what is wrong. And then we might move forward. And of course, we should have in focus these platforms
06:17in fining them or even going beyond this. But when you give guidelines to the likes of Elon Musk,
06:25the billionaire, he sends a tweet saying the EU must be abolished. Yeah, then I'm sorry,
06:30you should leave the market. Elon Musk should leave the market? Yes. Do you agree with that? And how do you
06:35push a billionaire out of the market on the Tesla owner? If the platform state don't want to comply
06:41with the rules we have in the EU, they are free to skip the European market. We have the rules we have
06:46in the EU. And if they don't want to comply, it's their case. But I still believe that our kids are faced
06:53with a lot of problematic content. And not just that, also the design of the platforms are not
07:00good for kids. They spend too much time there. We know that women, girls around 14, the age of 14,
07:07they spend more than three hours, but in average, even five, six hours on a daily basis on these
07:13platforms where they are formed. Their views on the world is put in there, not from parents,
07:19not from schools, not from civil society, but from a business, a commercial business. And I also think
07:26that we need to consider that as well. And the data backs up what you're saying,
07:29Crystal. Eight in 10 teens are checking their devices hourly. And according to a Eurobarometer,
07:34nine in 10 Europeans say action to protect children is a matter of urgency. And it's easier to introduce
07:41a ban than it is to crack down on the content. Yeah, of course, the addiction is very obvious.
07:47And that's why we should focus on the content at first, but also on the algorithms. So we should
07:56also control or have a kind of a specific approach on these algorithms who are using these addiction,
08:04who are using these dark patterns. That's why I think a ban is better right now. In principle,
08:10I think your idea is probably the best in principle, but in reality, it's so difficult to do. Look at the
08:18European Parliament right now. We would not even be able to agree on what is good content and what is
08:23bad content. Yeah. So we would end up doing nothing to protect our kids because the platforms Elon Musk
08:29and Mark Zuckerberg and all the others who owns these platforms, they don't want to protect our kids,
08:34because if they want to do it, they had already done it. And you don't have the luxury of time here
08:38in the parliament either to take years to decide. No, no. But if you're looking to the whole world and
08:45to the Internet Governance Forum, the whole world is looking for measures in protecting the younger
08:53generations for this mental health. Also another problem, democratic problem. But we need to do here
09:01something and we can also go together with other states in the world so that we have a broader
09:07negotiating part against all these. And you mentioned other states in the world. We understand
09:12that Ursula von der Leyen is planning a trip to Australia very soon. That's of course on trade,
09:16but it's likely social media and their ban will also come up. And that is very interesting because
09:21I'm following that debate as well and they have started now and we have already seen that they have
09:25closed accounts for millions of kids in Australia. And I think we have to look and see how they fix,
09:32you know, the bypass problem. But also does this really mean a better mental health? Does it really
09:38mean that we protect our kids? And if that's the case, I think really we should learn. So I'm curious
09:43about it. I'm going to follow it. And I'm very hopeful that Ursula von der Leyen also brings back good ideas
09:49from Australia. It seems to be working, even though I have been reading some parents are helping
09:54their children circumvent the rules. Yeah, but you can see already in Australia that they are
10:01circumvented. So the protection is not at all in this generation. So that's why we need to go beyond
10:08these. And that's why I'm also would say we need to think how we can support or even improve the DSA,
10:19the Digital Services Act, because this is only focusing on illegal content and not harmful content.
10:27And that's why we need to go beyond this anyway. Well, that's not completely correct,
10:32because we are also saying that if there is a systemic risk for things like disinformation,
10:37misinformation, but also hate speech, then the platforms need to risk mitigate. So they
10:43need to do something not just for minors. But we are also in the DSA, the Digital Services Act,
10:48we have an article, Article 28, and I will not be technical, but on that we have guidelines.
10:52It's about how we can protect kids. And the wording is quite clear. We need to have a very high level
10:59of protection. And that does not exist today. And since the platforms have done nothing at all to
11:05protect our kids. I think, to start with, maybe not in five years, maybe not in 10 years, but here
11:09and now, we need to send a very crystal clear signal. Our kids, they're not protected. And therefore,
11:15a ban is a way forward, even though we know that a percentage will probably bypass.
11:20Mm-hmm. Are you still not convinced?
11:22No, not really. It's a first step. It's a soft approach. But if we would like to achieve the goal
11:30for the mental health of our next generation, then we need to go beyond and we need to be more stricter.
11:37But let me stop you there as we are just getting warmed up.
11:40So now it's time for you both to direct each other, just like you do in the hemicycle. So Crystal, ladies first.
11:51Yeah, but Mr. Foss, I know that you've been working in this area for very, very long on digital
11:57questions. And in many ways, I don't think we disagree. However, you don't want to have this ban.
12:03But yet you have suggested that we should have age verification so that we need to verify which age
12:11people have before they enter the social media. Why should that matter if you don't want to have an
12:17age limit for entering social media? So why do you want to have age verification without having an age
12:22limit? Yeah. So age verification might only be one step, but of course, we need also the competence of
12:30kids to get a feeling for algorithms for digital for the digital world. And so this is not the best
12:40thing to move forward. So the balance and even better in focusing on the content, because this is
12:49affecting the content is also affecting younger generations beyond 16 or whatever. So this is not
12:58really something where we can influence a lot content wise. We should more concentrate and say
13:06what should be in and what should be out. But the thing is that discussing about the content does in the
13:14present climate we have in Brussels and in the EU right now mean that would mean that we do nothing
13:19because we cannot agree about what is good content and what is bad content. And that's why I'm in favor of
13:24of the ban because we will not be able to maybe you and I could agree, but I'm not sure that we could
13:28agree with the far right or the far left. So there I think we need we need to have something. So why
13:34should we do a reaction to that? And then you can pose your first question. Yes. So then you have to make
13:40very sure that the circumventing is not happening. And here we need probably to do a kind of a more
13:48intensive identification tool. And this again gives clear names or clear birthdays and so on.
13:58This is something what we need then to do in addition to something like this.
14:03But I have to follow up because I understand the bypass or circumvening thing.
14:08Yeah. But we also have bans, aids, limits on alcohol. And we also know that young people get access to
14:15alcohol. Shouldn't we then not have a ban? Shouldn't we have an age limit on that? Because also there we
14:21see that they are circumvening the rules. Yeah. But there is no digital alcohol in a way or digital
14:27alcohol is more the addictive design for algorithms. And this is something what we need to tackle. And
14:36and the analog addictive. This is a different story because online everything is possible.
14:46But Mr. Voss, it is time for you to pose your first question. Yeah, I would like to return this
14:50question. So in the report, you especially want to ban the social media use. But how we then tackle the
14:58problem of the same content appearing somewhere else. And this is something where I would say that's
15:06why it is not helpful. The banning of kids instead of banning of content. But if you talk about what
15:14people, young people, kids are watching, for instance, on television, if they still watch old fashioned
15:19television, very often you sit next to your parents and have an ability to discuss with them. What is it
15:26you're seeing? What does that mean? Is that the real world? How does it work? When you're on social
15:31media, you are completely on your own and no one is really helping you or following you. And that's
15:36why it's so much more important that we do this to protect kids because in the offline, in the analog world,
15:42you are better protected because you have people around you. But online kids are more intelligent than
15:49than the parents. So they know how to come to what they have in mind instead of the parents. Would you
15:57agree with that? No, but does that mean with your point of view here, Mr. Valls, that we should we
16:01shouldn't care because we cannot do anything anyway. And there are more, of course, kids understand
16:07quite a lot about how technical things works online. But should we then just give up and say that the
16:12the Internet should be a forum where nothing is banned, where not where everything is legal,
16:18even a child pornography, etc. You know, I think that what is illegal offline should also be illegal
16:23online. But we shouldn't have in mind that the problem is solved with this. No, we should
16:29have another approach on it. So that's I don't think that everything is sold, but I think we can take a
16:36huge step in the direction of protecting our kids. So that's the view from our MEPs. We'd also love to hear
16:41your view. You always can write to us here, the ring at your news.com. But it is now time to bring in a new voice.
16:51I would like to bring in the voice of the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, who said this week
16:56that Spain would ban social media for under 16s and legislation that could be introduced as soon as
17:02next week. Speaking at the World Government Summit this week in Dubai, Pedro Sánchez said social media has
17:08become a failed state where laws are ignored and crimes are tolerated. We will protect them from
17:15the digital wild west. We will change the law to hold executives accountable for illegal and hateful
17:21content. So, Axel, what did you think of this announcement that created a bit of a storm in Dubai
17:27and Qatar as well, where the tech summit was taking place? So I'm more than less on that line.
17:32I would agree. That's why I would suggest we need to think about content. I know it's extremely
17:41difficult what content is okay and what not. But on use cases, we can draw this line.
17:51But the momentum is there. We saw this announcement from Spain. France has introduced or is planning on
17:56introducing a ban for under 15s. Greece, Denmark, Ireland is also contemplating. That's true. Right
18:02now in the whole of the EU we're discussing this and we're discussing it for good reasons because
18:07we see that our kids are faced with things online that they shouldn't be able to see. And we have
18:12tried other ways and it doesn't work. So that's why a lot of governments think that this could be the
18:17next step. And I also think that if we don't do it at EU level but allow individual member states,
18:23then there's also risk that we fragment. Indeed. But we have a patchwork of different laws and then
18:29you know, we could face a lot of legal battles. Is it not better just to have a blanket EU ban?
18:33And that's why we in the European Parliament and a big majority did in fact suggest an EU ban,
18:39a pan-European ban. It's easier and it would cover and protect all our kids in the EU, even though
18:45even though we know that, of course, some of them will bypass the ban. But we still believe that that's
18:50the best and easiest way here now to protect them. And to go back to Elon Musk, his ears might be
18:56burning because we mentioned him already. He called Pedro Sanchez, the Prime Minister of Spain,
19:01a traitor and a tyrant also for these comments and a fascist. No, no. So we in Europe would like to link
19:12values with technology. And that's why we can't really allow every content on platforms at all.
19:20But if these tech billionaires that run these websites, if they don't have values like we do,
19:24what do you do then? If you are not interested in align with our values and what we have written
19:31in the DSA and DMA and so on, please leave the market. Well, of course, there's also that investigation
19:36underway by the Commission when it comes to Grok. That's the XAI chat box. We're waiting to hear
19:42more from Elon Musk and from X on that. But it is time now to take a short break here on The Ring.
19:48Stay with us. We'll be back very, very soon with some more political punch from the European Parliament.
19:52Welcome back to The Ring, Eurie News' weekly show. I'm here in the Parliament joined by MEPs Axel Voss and
20:08Crystal Schaldemose. And the idea here is to bring Parliament debates to your very sofa. This week,
20:14our guest MEPs are sharing their views on social media bans for under-16s. But we also love hearing
20:20from you. So we asked Eurie News' office Madrid to talk to locals and ask them if a social media ban is
20:26a good idea. Take a look.
20:28Today, people, what they see, they criticize them or they transvers them. And sometimes it can affect
20:36both the self-esteem and the thought of that child, since they still have that mature thought.
20:44They look good. I think they're not trained and I think it's a good measure.
20:49Well, I think that maybe it was a bit strong. Maybe it would be good to have some restrictions
20:56for the minority, but prohibiting them as such is a bit strong.
20:59The bad thing is that a lot of people create false profiles and they use them to give
21:04their own odyssey without their real identity.
21:07I think that Twitter is the most odyssey and the most bad things can be said.
21:13There are just a few opinions from the streets of Madrid. Your reaction to that, Crystal?
21:18Clever people in Madrid, I have to say, and I think they're right in their concerns.
21:22You know, it's not an easy task to take another step in order to protect our kids.
21:28However, I think when you balance everything up, a ban right now for young people and kids
21:36under the age of 16 is, in my opinion, the best way to protect them against what we just heard here.
21:41But a ban, of course, is a negative word for young people. Could we see a backlash from young people?
21:45I'm not sure. So, at first, the younger or the young people know what they are talking about. And
21:54that's why a ban probably wouldn't always fit the situation. And that's why probably they would,
22:02if they would know, to do more about algorithms or also the content.
22:07And what is the debate in Germany, the public debate on this?
22:09Yeah, of course, the last time it was has been the exploitation of sexual exploitation of children on X.
22:20And so this is something. But here, I would say it's fitting the same opinions here for Germany.
22:28And we heard there about the fear about X and the hate speech.
22:31But the thing we know from surveys in Denmark that around 94 percent of kids under the age of 13 is on social media.
22:40So when so when we talk about people knowing the digital world and understanding what they're seeing,
22:45I simply don't agree on that. I mean, if you're 15, you might better understand and you know the techniques
22:51and you can you can maybe also know how to approach this and talk to an adult.
22:56But kids, real kids, and that's why, I mean, we need also to understand the depth of this issue.
23:02It is really serious.
23:04And that's the thing, Axel Voss, how do you explain or educate kids who've never lived in a world without digital devices?
23:12This is really tricky.
23:14But all the younger ones who are growing up with these, they have a kind of a natural feeling.
23:22instead of having a real social life, they have this social life online.
23:28And probably there is a relief if you are just taking the mobile for one hour, two hours away,
23:37and then they feel more free. But to come to this point, this is very hard.
23:41We know also in Denmark, we have seen some schools making some tests
23:46about how it works when they are taking the phone away from the kids during school day.
23:53And in the beginning, people react very, very angry. They are angry.
23:57Because they are addicted. They act like an addicted person.
24:01But after 14 days, the majority of them says, well, this is in fact wonderful.
24:05We are now looking at each other. We are talking to each other. We are playing.
24:08So I also think that we are in fact doing something good for the kids, even though they might not
24:13understand it to begin with. If we make them less dependent and make sure that they spend less
24:19hours online and make sure that that for a part of the content that it's not kept away from them.
24:25And that means they're not being photographed either in the school yard, which is something
24:28that a lot of people do not like. Would you be in favor of this? Taking mobile phones from school
24:32kids during the school day? Yes, during the school hours.
24:36This ban you're in favor of? Yes, yes, yes, yes. So, but again, this is not age verification.
24:42This is in general, something what I would say, this is a good thing, especially also for the
24:49concentration in the school. Well, now it is time to move on to our fifth and final round. Are you ready?
25:00So now it is time for something a little bit different. I'm going to ask our MEPs a set of
25:05questions and you're only allowed answer with yes or no. Is that doable? Oh, for a politician?
25:12It's difficult, but we will try to manage. Wonderful. Are you a social media user? Yes or no? Yes.
25:19Yes. Are you addicted to social media, Axel Voss? Yes or no? Totally not.
25:24No, not at all. Is social media harmful to children under 16, Axel Voss? Yes or no? Yes. Yes.
25:33Is social media harmful not just to teens, but to society in general, Mr. Voss? Yes.
25:39Also here, I have to agree, yes. Are parents responsible for their children's
25:45social media usage, Mr. Voss? I would say yes. Yes, to a very large extent, but not completely.
25:52And is big tech responsible for the mental health crisis we're experiencing today? Exactly. Also,
25:57they have a huge responsibility for what the content, which user are seeing which content. Yes.
26:04Are they aware of this responsibility? I don't think so. They are very well aware,
26:08but they earn a lot of money and that's why they do it. And should governments control kids' social
26:13media use? Yes or no? No, not really. So, no. This is precisely where you both disagree. Yes,
26:20when it comes to when they are allowed to enter social media. Are you on Twitter? I'm on X, yes,
26:27and I have to say that I'm addicted to using my phone, but not necessarily social media. Are you on TikTok?
26:33No, but X, Insta and Facebook. Should we ban social media usage from the European Parliament?
26:42No. No. And something general, is the future of the European Union bright for our young people
26:48watching today? I hope brighter, but it is difficult times, but we can help them have a brighter future if
26:55we help them stay away from social media. Yes. The future is bright. Axel Voss and Crystal,
27:01Shalda Moise, thank you so much for being with us here. Did anything change your mind from what
27:06you heard today? No, not really. I agree on a fundamental level, but we need to do more.
27:13Well, I still believe that a ban is, here and now, the best and easiest quick fix.
27:18Thank you so much for joining us today on The Ring and being our guest and sharing
27:22your insights with us. And thank you so much for tuning in. As I said earlier, TheRing at Euronews.com,
27:28that is our email address. But for now, thank you so much for tuning in. Take care and see you very soon
27:32here on Euronews.
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