The government has announced a ban on some social media platforms for under-16s. It’s a move that echoes a similar ban introduced by the Australian government, which came into effect in December. So what are teens actually looking at on social media? And will a ban help?

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Guest: Mark Sellman, technology correspondent, The Times.

Host: Manveen Rana.

Producers: Micaela Arneson, Harry Bligh.

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Read more: Doomscrolling 708 videos a day: how TikTok turned our teens into addicts

Further listening: How infinite scrolling damages our brains - The Saturday Story

Clips: The Times, Times Radio, Revealing Reality, BBC News, Sky News.

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UK social media ban: an end to brain rot and doomscrolling?

The Story

UK social media ban: an end to brain rot and doomscrolling?