There is an urgent need to tackle the growing issue of digital addiction, particularly among young people, Kerry general election candidate Billy O’Shea has insisted.
The Fine Gael flagbearer said he is committed to safeguarding Kerry’s communities and families and he stressed the importance of new measures to address harmful online design practices that keep users, especially young people, constantly engaged.
“We’re living in a digital age where design tricks are increasingly used to keep people glued to their screens.
“Infinite scrolling, auto-play and constant notifications are not just harmless features – they’re engineered to keep users engaged, often at the cost of children’s well-being,” he said.
Mr O’Shea said, as the father of three teenagers, it is clear to him that this is something that must be taken seriously to protect communities from the effects of excessive screen time.
He congratulated the winners of the 2024 Euroscola competition on digital addiction, which gave young people the chance to share their ideas for EU action on the issue and, in particular, he praised the students of St Brendan’s College in Killarney, who took the runner-up position in the Ireland South category, as a positive example of proactive work on digital health.
Mr O’Shea also raised concerns about the design techniques used by social media and tech companies to exploit psychological vulnerabilities.
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