介绍： Social-Media Ban Imposes Brave New World on Australian Teens
From: The Wall Street Journal
Australian teen Zoey Bender started posting “get ready with me” videos on TikTok a year ago as a creative outlet during a difficult time, and ended up amassing nearly 60,000 followers.
Zoey, now 14, said she found fri...

介绍： Social-Media Ban Imposes Brave New World on Australian Teens
From: The Wall Street Journal
Australian teen Zoey Bender started posting “get ready with me” videos on TikTok a year ago as a creative outlet during a difficult time, and ended up amassing nearly 60,000 followers.
Zoey, now 14, said she found friendships and prospective business contacts as her following grew, connecting her with hair salons and makeup artists who she thinks could help support her dreams of a career in the beauty industry.
But as of Wednesday, TikTok is required to shut down the accounts of teens Zoey's age, under a new law intended to shelter children from the mental-health risks of life online. The app is one of 10 popular social-media platforms that must prevent anyone in Australia under 16 years old from holding an account.
Australians are divided over whether the law, which passed a year ago with broad political support, will make anyone safer and is even enforceable. Young Australians certainly have something to say about it. 
“I don't think that they considered us,” said Zoey. Teens today have grown up with social media and know its harms, she said. “But they didn't ask us how we felt or what we needed or what could help us.”
Zoey's mother, BJ Newton, an associate professor of social work and social policy, described the ban as devastating. “This is an entire world and society as these young people know it, ending.” 
The age cutoff of 16 is roughly in line with when Australian teenagers can drive and apply to join the military. They can legally drink when they turn 18.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he is under no illusions that teenage social-media use will be curbed overnight. 
“This won't be perfect,” he said Sunday. “Just like, chances are, last night…somewhere in Australia, someone under 18 got a drink in a pub.”
But Albanese said the government expects compliance. “This is the law,” he said.
The banned platforms are among the most heavily used by Australian teens: Facebook, Instagram, Kick, Reddit, Snapchat, Threads, TikTok, Twitch, X and YouTube. They all meet a set of criteria, including that they allow users to post content, according to Australia's online regulator, the eSafety Commissioner. Some smaller services such as Bluesky have self-assessed and will ban under-16s, too.
The companies are now required to take reasonable steps to enforce the new rules, under threat of penalty. Parents and children won't be fined.
YouTube Kids, WhatsApp and Messenger are among platforms that won't be restricted, though that could change if their services evolve, the regulator said.
Tech companies said they would comply with the ban, and some began deactivating accounts before the law came into effect. Several said they had begun notifying users believed to be under 16 that they would need to verify their age with identification or by providing a selfie for facial analysis.
amass /əˈmæs/ v. 积累 
📗例句：She managed to amass a large collection of vintage stamps. 
（她收集了大量复古邮票） 
🥝搭配：amass wealth 积累财富 
prospective /prəˈspektɪv/ adj. 潜在的 
📗例句：The company is interviewing prospective employees this week. 
（公司本周正在面试潜在员工） 
🥝搭配：prospective client 潜在客户 
enforceable /ɪnˈfɔːrsəbl/ adj. 可执行的 
📗例句：The new rule is not easily enforceable in practice. 
（新规定在实践中不易执行） 
🥝搭配：legally enforceable 法律上可强制执行的 
devastating /ˈdevəsteɪtɪŋ/ adj. 毁灭性的 
📗例句：The sudden loss of her pet was devastating to her. 
（宠物的突然离世对她打击很大） 
🥝搭配：devastating effect 毁灭性影响 
cutoff /ˈkʌtɔːf/ n. 截止点 
📗例句：The cutoff for applications is next Friday. 
（申请截止日期是下周五） 
🥝搭配：age cutoff 年龄限制