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YouTube to be included in Australia's teen social media ban

The Australian government says the world-first ban is aimed at protecting youth from online harm.

Australia's eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant last month recommended YouTube be added to the ban as it was "the most frequently cited platform" where children aged 10 to 15 years saw "harmful content". Last week, several Australian media outlets had reported that Google was threatening to sue the government if YouTube was included in the ban, arguing it would restrict political freedom. She described trying to protect children from the harms of the internet as "like trying to teach your kids to swim in the open ocean with the rips and the sharks compared to at the local council pool".

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