<
https://www.techdirt.com/2023/06/28/social-media-was-useful-for-me-as-an-ill-nerdy-teenager/>
"Lately, concerns about allowing minors to use social media have been front and
center in the public discourse, but ways in which they use it productively have
been absent from the conversation. My own anecdotal experience does not
constitute comprehensive data, but it’s important to understand how social
media can be extremely useful for teens who are sick and who have unique
interests. Current proposals and laws range from restricting minors on social
media to outright bans. Many of these laws would have prevented me from finding
medical answers, friends, and career options.
My autoimmune disease count is up to eight, and always growing. Last year it
was a solid seven, and six the year prior. Autoimmune diseases tend to come in
groups and can mimic each other, making diagnosis difficult. Ever seen the
Simpsons episode with Mr. Burns’ doctor explaining how his many diseases work
together by pushing a bunch of fuzzy toys through a door? (See: Three Stooges
Syndrome.) My first diagnosis was at the age of 13: Crohn’s Disease. It’s only
the beginning of the story.
Current laws and proposals would endanger minors’ access to health
information
A key piece of how I found my answers both as a teenager and an adult was
social media. As I tell my story, it’s important to keep in mind that support
forums for people with various medical conditions would be covered by many new
social media laws and proposals intended to protect kids online. Multiple
proposals completely ban minors below various ages from accessing social media.
Even for the laws and proposals that don’t ban minors from using platforms but
instead require parental consent, that minor will then have their and their
guardian’s personally identifiable information tied to a forum about their
condition forever.
The most effective age verification tools currently in use require very
personal information, from government IDs to face scans. This is troubling for
many reasons, a key one being that platforms regularly suffer from data
breaches and hacking. While I am open about most of my health struggles, many
people understandably want to keep their medical information private. Not only
would tying one’s identity to sensitive medical information discourage speech,
it would also discourage support networks and medical information sharing."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
