In a video address to the nation, timed with Australia’s world-first teen social media ban, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese encouraged under-16-year-olds newly unable to access social media to “read that book”.
The ban excludes anyone under 16 from a range of social media platforms, including TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.
But social media communities like #BookTok and #Bookstagram, led by teen literary influencers on TikTok and Instagram respectively, significantly influence what and how much teens read. #BookTok in particular is credited with “driving sales and launching authors’ careers”, as one Guardian report put it. Women and girls aged 12-25 are BookTok’s most enthusiastic users.
