Persuasive Speech Script

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Grand Canyon University *

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Electrical Engineering

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Apr 3, 2024

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Persuasive Speech- There Should be an Age Limit on Social Media Zoe Lewin How many of you had a form of social media before you were in High School? Okay, a lot of us. So that means you are about 11-14 years old then. Now, how many of you think that was healthy for you? Okay, well with that being in place, Good Afternoon class, My name is Zoe Lewin and by the end of my speech I will prove to you why there should be an age limit on social media. For those of you wondering what my credibility is to speak on this topic, I had a phone and social media early on in my life in 6 th grade at 11 years old. I also believe having a phone so early, made it harder for me to stay off the phone because I was so adapted to it. This topic is relevant in our lives because with the rise of technology, it is important to see what we as Gen Z can do to prevent our past habits and implement standards for our kids in the future. I know we are not parents right now, but we need to protect our children in the future for what may come. We as Gen Z have all grown up around technology and are one of the most influenced generations by technology as we have seen the iPhone develop further, we have seen self- driving and electric cars transform, ai becoming more intelligent as we speak, and many more creations being brought to life. Social media has become an integral part of our lives, but its impact on young individuals is a matter of concern. Therefore, implementing an age limit on social media is crucial to ensure the safety and well-being of young adolescents. When I am talking about social media, I’m talking about the basics facebook, Instagram, snapchat, tik tok, twitter, and youtube even. The Problem is simple. Having a social media is a self-control responsibility, and many users do badly with this. There are many videos, writings, and photos online that are not appropriate for everyone to see, or that you should be seeing. Adolescents do not have very good self-control and could get themselves caught up in something harmful. Giving access to children too early on may cause harm to their mental health, putting their safety in danger, and it can give them a new addiction. “ Research shows that it takes children about 12 years to fully develop the cognitive structures that enable them to engage in abstract thinking, which is a necessary prerequisite to ethical thinking.” (Cybercivics, 2023). Before 12 years old, it is difficult for a child to fully grasp the impact of their actions online. This can put them in harm’s way by engaging in cyberbullying, dangerous “challenges”, and misinformation. This can affect young adolescents’ mental health and make them feel overwhelmed with anxiety, depression, and obsession as well. Another reason this is so important to do is because of lying. Lying about your age is something that can put you in a lot of danger, especially online. It’s very easy to just change your birthdate to something older if you aren’t of the age limit. This can teach kids that lying is okay when you want something, aka a social media. “Ultimately, when to allow kids access to social media sites is a parenting decision. So, decide if you’re comfortable with them lying to Instagram or TikTok now, as it may influence how you deal with them possibly lying to you later.” (Cybercivics, 2023). And I actually have a video to show you, *play video*. As you can see in the video, they talk about how it’s affecting kids mental health and why parents are on the rise of wanting to implicate a harsher age restriction to social media.

So we ask ourselves, what could change if we do have a harsher age restriction on social media. First, we get to see our children healthy and have a healthier mindset from not being on social media. Reducing technology usage can reduce the stress and anxiety our children face from social media. You can start to give them a childhood of memories playing outside, going on trips with them, and evidently changing their lives for the better, and doing it for real, not behind a screen. “…you can free up more time to focus on other things that are important to you, whether it's spending time with loved ones, pursuing a hobby, or working on a personal project.” (Danish, 2023). We start to see kids out doing more and having more fun relatively than staring at a stupid tik tok video all day. Harsher age restrictions on social media provide more protection over children in keeping their personal information safe. This is not only a legal requirement by the COPPA (The Children’s Online Privacy Protecion Act) which prohibits the collection and storage of personal information from children under 13 years of age, but it is also and ethical imperative to protect the rights and well-being of young adolescents in the digital realm. My Call to Action for you all, is to consider and to talk to your siblings who may be younger, or your kids in the future to implement your standard of what age should be appropriate for them to be on social media. Talking this out with them and telling them the dangers of social media will help them understand more on why they should wait to have one. I think that the age limit on social media should be raised to 15 and up, so right when you go into high school, because that is when you are fully aware of what to do when you run into something harmful or important. I firmly believe that informing them sooner, is better than later because they could find themselves making a social media account without them knowing and then it is too late. I also want to encourage you all to show your kids some examples of things that can happen on social media or provide them with examples from your experience if you have any of why it is so important to be aware of this. Show them cheesy videos that we watched in school when we were younger and show them the dangers of what could happen. Make it important that they can be open and honest with you if anything ever happens, because online, everything stays. The question of whether there should be a legal age limit for social media invites ongoing dialogue about the best ways to promote responsible online engagement and harness the potential of technology to enhance the well-being of users of all ages. By bringing the Safety and Well-being of adolescents, Seeing where we can understand why adolescents want a social media so young, and by preparing for the future, we will start to see why an age-limit is necessary on social media. Thank you.

References Cybercivics. (2023, November 7). Three Reasons Social Media Age Restrictions Matter. Cybercivics. https://www.cybercivics.com/single-post/three-reasons-social-media-age- restrictions-matter HC Suggest Age Limit for Use of Social Media. (2023, September 20). The Economic Times E- Paper. https://gogalecom.lopes.idm.oclc.org/ps/i.do?p=STND&u=canyonuniv&id=GALE %7CA765881457&v=2.1&it=r&sidebsco&aty=ip Set age-limit for social media platforms: Karnataka High Court. (2023, September 20). The Economic Times . https://gogalecom.lopes.idm.oclc.org/ps/i.do?p=STND&u=canyonuniv&id=GALE %7CA76585521&v=2.1&it=r&si=ebsco Incoming Senate bill would set age limit for kids on social media. (2023, April 25) Washintonpost.com https://gogalecom.lopes.idm.oclc.org/ps/i.do?p=AONE&u=canyonuniv&id=GALE %7CA746961789&v=2.1&it=r&si=ebsco Cardiff, W. Most parents unclear on social media age limits. (2017, March 19). Wales on Sunday https://gogalecom.lopes.idm.oclc.org/ps/retrieve.do? tabID=News&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&searchResultsType=MultiTab&retrievalId=ee4011703 28a41728da60efa89b4fcc9&hitCount=1&searchType=AdvancedSearchForm&currentPosition=1 &docId=GAE %7CA486021931&docType=Brief+article&sort=Relevance&contentSegment=ZXAGMOD1&prodId =WHIC&pageNum=1&contentSet=GALE %7CA486021931&searchId=R1&userGroupName=canyonuniv&inPS=true Danish, A. G. (2023, April 25). LinkedIn. The Benefits of Quitting Social Media https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/benefits-quitting-social-media-11-reasons-give-try-a-g- danish

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