The Politics of Children’s Internet Use

Abstract

Children’s use of the Internet raises fraught issues, frequently contributing to a media-supported moral panic. Whilst digital technologies offer young people unique opportunities for education, entertainment, and the development of key social, motor, and media-literacy skills, they also pose risks, such as those relating to bullying, adult content, unwanted contact, and a displacement of more meaningful activities, such as reading or physical play. How, or whether, these risks should be minimized is the subject of intense media and policy debate, and often technological solutions are favored over social policies that are messy and uncertain in their effectiveness. Nash sets out the evidence regarding the balance of digital opportunity and risk for young people, and uses this as the context to outline policy measures targeted at them. Her analysis raises questions over whether children’s interests can be well served by policies developed in the context of a risk-focused public debate.