Julie Inman Grant, Australia’s eSafety Commissioner: Keep kids away from social media until they are ready

Katy Watson speaks to Julie Inman Grant, Australia’s eSafety Commissioner about the country’s social media ban for under 16s: “To keep kids away until they're ready, I think that is the monumental circuit breaker move that we need to move to,” she says.

Brought up in Seattle, North America Julie has spent her career in the technology sector working for Microsoft, Twitter and Adobe in public policy and safety before moving into government. She moved to Australia more than 25 years ago and from 2017 Julie has been working on online safety. In her role as commissioner she has become the target of free speech absolutists like Elon Musk, wh have accused of her trying to censor the internet.

No stranger to controversy and abuse, she’s now the public face of Australia’s landmark social media ban for children under 16 which came into force in December.

Now countries around the world are considering similar bans as cases of online addiction, self harm and abuse are reportedly on the rise.

The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC, including episodes with Antonio Guterres, Secretary General of the United Nations and Taiwan’s cyber ambassador Audrey Tang. You can listen on the BBC World Service on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 0800 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out three times a week on BBC Sounds or wherever you get your podcasts.

Presenter: Katy Watson Producer: Dan Soekov, Clare Williamson, Farhana Haider Editor: Justine Lang

Get in touch with us on email TheInterview@bbc.co.uk and use the hashtag #TheInterviewBBC on social media.

(Image: Julie Inman Grant Credit: Reuters)

Det här avsnittet är hämtat från ett öppet RSS-flöde och publiceras inte av Podme. Det kan innehålla reklam.

Avsnitt(1916)

Chaka Khan, singer: Music is a calling

“This is a calling. It's bigger than anything in your life as an individual. If you found the thing that you were put on this planet to do, and a lot of people are put on this planet and they don't kn...

24 Maj 26min

Jennifer Riria, banking chief: Financial system still excludes women

“Most of Africa is rural, and although urbanisation is taking root now, the systems that deliver financial services to women are still eluding them.” Leanna Byrne speaks to microfinance pioneer Dr J...

21 Maj 23min

Daniel Noboa, Ecuador President: A war on gangs

“This is a war. We will treat it as a war, and first thing that we want is the war to end. We want peace. We want a better life for our people, especially for our youth.”Caitriona Perry speaks to Ecua...

19 Maj 23min

Fatima Bio, Sierra Leone First Lady: Speaking up

BBC journalist Megha Mohan speaks to Sierra Leone’s first lady, Fatima Bio, about escaping child marriage at the age of 13, rebuilding her life as a refugee in London, and her rise to become one of th...

17 Maj 23min

Leopoldo Lopez, Venezuelan opposition leader: I am not bitter

James Menendez speaks to Leopoldo Lopez, once the most prominent face of Venezuela’s opposition, he is now living in exile in Spain. He spent more than a decade attempting to unseat Nicolás Maduro’s...

14 Maj 23min

Yurii Tokar: Russia deployed Kenyans to death zone

“Russians collected all Kenyans and did everything for them to go to the front line, to go to the death zone.”Waihiga Mwaura speaks to Yurii Tokar the Ukraine ambassador to Kenya. The Ukrainian claims...

12 Maj 23min

Mikhail Ulyanov: Rescuing Iran nuclear talks

“It’s outrageous because these nuclear plant facilities were certified by the International Atomic Energy Agency as purely peaceful facilities. The inspectors, they spent, there, a lot of time, 24 hou...

10 Maj 21min

Hanan Balkhy, WHO chief for Sudan and Iran: work continues despite conflicts

“During the recent conflict [in Iran], there was a pause, not a full stop or halt of the functions. Once the airspace opened up again, we reprioritized the delivery of those life-saving kits to the me...

7 Maj 22min