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Hard Fork · July 10, 2026 · 01:19:01

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

Casey Newton, Kevin Roose & Casey Newton

Kevin Roose and Casey Newton examine the effectiveness of Australia's social media ban for minors, exploring whether legislative restrictions actually prevent teen usage or merely push activity underground. The hosts discuss the philosophical question of AI consciousness and what consciousness means in the context of large language models, plus review new tools and AI applications.

This summary was generated from show notes and public descriptions, not from a full transcript review. Details may contain inaccuracies.

Editorial

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Social Media Bans Push Usage Underground Rather Than Eliminating It
Australia's ban on social media for under-16s may not reduce teen usage—it likely drives the behavior underground, making it harder to monitor and potentially less safe.
ClaudeChatGPTGemini
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Consciousness Debates in AI Hinge on Definitional Uncertainty, Not New Evidence
Discussions about whether AI systems are conscious reveal that the core problem is philosophical disagreement about what consciousness means, not discovery of new facts about LLMs.
ClaudeChatGPTGemini
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Policy Effectiveness Requires Honest Measurement of Real-World Outcomes
Regulators and advocates often declare policy victories without verifying whether the intended outcome actually occurred—a disconnect between stated goals and measurable results.
ClaudeChatGPTGemini

Misc

✧Australia's ban creates a paradox: if teens still access social media illegally, does banning accomplish the stated goal?
✧The hosts grapple with what 'consciousness' even means when applied to AI systems—a debate that hinges on definitions rather than new discoveries
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