Do Social Media Bans Work? + A Conversation About A.I. Consciousness + Tool Time

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**Casey Newton** (0:34)
Kevin, I thought this was interesting. Meta sometimes struggles with the amount of trust that users have in it. Have you noticed this?

**Kevin Roose** (0:41)
I have, yes.

**Casey Newton** (0:42)
People don't always trust that when they say something, that the company is going to do right by them. So they have this really new interesting approach that they're taking to build trust. I saw this in the Financial Times this week. Meta is now testing AI glasses that continuously record audio and take photos every few seconds.

**Kevin Roose** (1:01)
Oh, good.

**Casey Newton** (1:01)
Yeah. So if you were worried that putting Meta glasses on your face wasn't going to contribute to building a global panopticon, rest assured they will now just be continuously recording.

**Kevin Roose** (1:14)
I'm so glad they've learned some lessons from all of their privacy scandals and consent decrees and settlements over the years. It's really nice to know that they've taken all that to heart and set out on a better course.

**Casey Newton** (1:27)
Yeah. I hope they call these new glasses Cambridge Optica.
It's the Cambridge Optica version of the Meta glasses.

**Kevin Roose** (1:38)
Cambridge Inolitica?

**Casey Newton** (1:40)
Yes, Cambridge Inolitica would be another approach.

**Kevin Roose** (1:43)
We're workshopping over here. Call us, Mark.

**Casey Newton** (1:45)
Call us.

**Kevin Roose** (1:51)
I'm Kevin Roose, a tech columnist at The New York Times.

**Casey Newton** (1:53)
I'm Casey Newton from Platformer.

**Kevin Roose** (1:55)
And this is Hard Fork.

**Casey Newton** (1:56)
This week, our social media bans for teens working, conflicting new evidence from around the globe. Then, NYU professor Jeff Sebo joins us to discuss new research into whether AI could one day become conscious. And finally, it's show and tell in our latest edition of Tool Time. And it's a cool time.

**Kevin Roose** (2:25)
Okay, so it's time to check in on a story we've covered periodically on this show, which is the state of the social media backlash and these social media bans that have been going into effect in countries around the world.

**Casey Newton** (2:37)
Yes, Kevin, you may remember that at the end of last year, I made a prediction that by the end of 2026, 16 plus would become the new norm for getting a social media account worldwide. And as we enter July, Australia, Brazil, Indonesia, Malaysia, France, the United Kingdom, Denmark, and Slovenia have either enacted laws or are preparing measures that would limit children's use of social platforms. So typically barring kids under 15 or 16 from TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and X. That's a big change.

**Kevin Roose** (3:09)
That is a big change. And I remember you making that prediction, but I also remember that you didn't include Slovenia in your list of countries that would apply one of these bans. So I'm only gonna grant you partial credit on that one.

**Casey Newton** (3:19)
Here's what I've always said about Slovenia. They could do anything.
It's a very dynamic place, is what I'll say about Slovenia. So that was the prediction, but over the last few weeks, we have gotten several big updates that make me feel like, you know, number one, this prediction is absolutely gonna happen. But more importantly, I just think the internet is going to start feeling like a very different place sometime soon.

**Kevin Roose** (3:44)
Okay, make your case, maybe start close to home. What is happening in the US with social media bans?

**Casey Newton** (3:50)
So on Monday, the US. Supreme Court declined to block a Texas law that requires app stores and developers to enforce age verification and make kids get parental consent to download apps. So this is one of the stricter forms of age assurance, as it's called, that you will find out there. Texas passed a law in 2025 called the App Store Accountability Act. And if you live in Texas and you're a kid, you have to link your account to a parent or guardian, and then your parent or guardian has to approve any app before your minor can download it.

**Kevin Roose** (4:25)
So the Supreme Court did not take up this case, which basically means that, what, this is now legal to do. You can, if you are a state, you can pass a law saying that you have to age verify to get onto social media.