"If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear."

Social media allows us to express ourselves and access information about the world. However, minors are sometimes exposed to harmful content and interactions via social media, and studies have linked significant social media use to anxiety, depression, and reduced wellbeing, particularly among young people.

In response, countries like Australia, France, and Portugal are banning social media access for minors, while Poland, Spain, and Canada are considering doing the same. Supporters of these laws argue that social media bans for minors will protect them from online harms. Critics argue that social media bans for minors restrict their freedom of expression and access to information, while inappropriately transferring parents’ responsibility to protect their children to the state. Enforcing age restrictions would also require some sort of digital identification, compelling users – including adults – to share personal information, thereby violating their privacy.

Question #1: 

Do governments have the right to restrict access to social media for minors? Do social media bans violate the rights or freedoms of minors, such as their freedom of expression, access to information, or privacy? Do social media bans transfer excessive power to the state by undermining the right and responsibility of parents to protect and direct their children?

People increasingly rely on AI chats to ask questions, explore ideas, and work through their most private thoughts. In some cases, however, individuals who have interacted with AI chats have gone on to commit atrocious crimes (e.g., the person who committed the Tumbler Ridge school shooting in British Columbia).

In response, some want to grant law enforcement access to users’ chats, or to compel AI platforms to proactively disclose flagged conversations to law enforcement in the interest of preventing crime and protecting the public. Others argue that this will erode privacy, accelerate government surveillance, and undermine users’ freedom of expression, autonomy, and capacity to explore ideas.

Question #2: 

Is an AI chat different from a private journal or diary? To what extent, if any, should governments be permitted to access or regulate private interactions with AI chats in order to prevent harm? What impact would government interference with AI platforms have on Canadians privacy, freedom of expression, and autonomy? How should society balance public safety with privacy and freedom in the age of AI?