Who Should Control Teen Screen Time?

Dear Reader,

I was 11 when I made a Facebook account.

I still remember the cramped cyber café where it happened, with its white walls and bright red plastic chairs. Soon, Facebook became the place where my friends and I spent hours each day during our vacations. We posted statuses about what were eating. We complained about our parents. We created photo albums documenting our lives, with little regard for privacy.

That was almost two decades ago.

Today’s teens inhabit a very different internet. The platforms popular among young people—Instagram and Snapchat—are much more stimulating. They're designed to hook users so they cannot look away.

Surveys show that in India, about half of urban parents say their children aged 9-17 spend three or more hours a day online. Many report their kids are “addicted” to these platforms.

Too much screen time has serious downsides: reduced attention spans, rising anxiety and depression, to name a few. 

Kiran Tevtiya, a Delhi-based child psychologist, told me that she now sees toddlers who don’t want to play with toys because they feel too passive compared to the stimulation of short-form videos.

So, should we ban social media for teens and children?

The answer isn’t straightforward.

Digital rights advocates warn that enforcing age limits could require linking accounts to government IDs, raising privacy concerns. Others argue bans could deepen India’s digital divide, where many girls still can’t access phones. 

And then there’s the question of community. For some teens, especially those who feel unsafe at home, social media can be a place of belonging.

But perhaps the most important voices in this debate aren’t policymakers or psychologists.

They’re teenagers.

I spoke to Ziana, a 16-year-old in Mumbai preparing for NEET. She told me she sometimes opens Instagram for “just ten minutes.” An hour disappears. She feels guilty. She wonders where the time went.

And yet, she also worries about losing touch with her friends if a ban comes into effect.

Another teen, Nikhil, told me that a blanket ban feels extreme. “People will find their way around it,” he said. What he wants instead is better awareness and better design.

And then there was seven-year-old Sonam, who proudly told me that she once finished her family’s entire data pack watching reels through the night. She laughed as she recounted the story. There was no policy in her voice. Just joy.

Listening to them, I realised something.

Even among India’s youth, there’s no consensus. Some want protection. Others want autonomy. 

Still, this debate will decide how millions of young people will grow up online. And, their voices deserve space too.

In the latest episode of The Signal Brief, we hear from psychologists, digital rights advocates and from teens themselves.

Should India ban social media?

You can find The Signal Brief on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.

Thank you once again for listening and supporting us. We’d love to hear from you; write to us at [email protected] or find us on Instagram or X at @thesignaldotco.

Best,
Kudrat
on behalf of The Core

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