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- [00:01]
Kyra Kelly
The Hard Shoulder with Kyra Kelly and Shane Coleman on News Talk with the
- [00:07]
Jess Kelly
MG Hybrid and electric range.
- [00:12]
Kyra Kelly
Jess Kelly joins us once again for the tech takeover. Jess, what's on the agenda this week?
- [00:17]
Jess Kelly
We have a very interesting, very exclusive interview with two executives from Google. And I was excited to do this interview because you and I, Kira, for many years now have been talking about the issue of online safety. And just a few weeks ago, we were talking on the show about Ireland's approach to this issue. So in relation to digital age verification. And one of the points that I always make is surely there's more that tech companies could and should be doing to keep our young people safe online. And I went down to Google yesterday because they were hosting an event. They have identified that how families navigate technology is a top priority for the company in Ireland this year. And they were hosting their fourth annual Growing up in the Digital Digital Age Summit. So I went down to the Google HQ and I met with Mindy brooks, who's the VP of Google Kids and Families, as well as YouTube's global head of health, Dr. Garth Graham. Now, this is the first time in the 15 years or so that I've been talking about technology that I've ever interviewed executives from a tech company who don't have a technological background. These are medical professionals. They come from medical backgrounds. Garth, for example, has been a cardiologist. And Mindy comes from a child psychology point of view. So it was fascinating to hear their take on these issues as well as the fact that they didn't shy away from any awkward questions very often. And I don't mind saying it, when you're interviewing executives from big tech companies, you're asked to send topics in advance. You're told that there are certain areas that they won't answer on. You're told that there's usually a group of pure people standing in front of you giving you evils. If you ask a certain question, it can be an intimidating environment. That wasn't the case. I went down, spoke to both of them, and it was a very long conversation. We spoke about a whole host of topics, but I wanted to start by asking about some of the technological tools that already exist and how they can benefit both parents and indeed the child. Regular listeners will know that I often recommend Google Family Link when they're setting up a device for their child, regardless of their age. And I started by asking Mindy and Garth about the benefits of using these type of tools when it comes to navigating kids in the digital age.
- [02:34]
Shane Coleman
I mean, one of the main benefits of Family Link is the flexibility of the tool. So our goal is to create a parental control that can flex to any family style. So one family here in Dublin might be different, a family in a different country. So we want to provide the flexibility. So for example, I want to be able to set app screen time limits, set school downtime and be able to manage purchases. I can do that for my family. Another family might want to do, oh, I just want to manage bedtime and see their location. So we offer that flexibility through Family Link that I think really helps empower parents and also create a dynamic that works well for their family.
- [03:12]
Dr. Garth Graham
In addition, when you take that into the content space around, say, YouTube, then you can get more age appropriate experiences for that child. When you kind of choose whatever child setting you want, particularly for tweens between 9 and 12. And as the child not to get too clinical, prefrontal cortex starts to develop more. This idea of age appropriate information is really good for their overall development. And so it's a combination of, as Minhu was saying, being able to set the right things for your family from managing your home standpoint, and it's good in the age appropriate context for your child development.
- [04:00]
Kyra Kelly
Okay, Jess, explain to me how it works and is it free to use?
- [04:04]
Jess Kelly
It is free to use, and that's one of the big selling points. So you go to Google Family Link, you can just search for it and what you do is you associate your Gmail account, so you, the parent, with an account that's on the device of the child. So say if your child has a tablet or a phone, you associate that Gmail address with the Google Family link. And what it does is it gives you, the parent eyes on what apps are on the phone. What's the screen time like? You can set screen time limits, you can turn off access to certain apps at certain times of the day. So if you have kids who are, you know, demons for TikTok or Snapchat during dinner time or when they're meant to be doing their homework, you, the parent, can go in at a certain
- [04:45]
Kyra Kelly
time of the night, you can go
- [04:47]
Jess Kelly
in and you can knock off access. The nighttime thing is a huge point and it's something that we've spoken about quite a lot. Every expert I have ever spoken to, including both of these from Google, have advised that you don't let kids have a device of their own in the bedroom. But if your kid does take it, maybe they listen to books to fall asleep or something like that. You can go in as the parent and turn off access to every single other element of the device to prevent them from having that. So it is free to use it gives you that peace of mind without sort of betraying the independence of the child. You're not going to be able to go in and read all of their DMs. But by having this in place, for example, the children will only be able to access YouTube Kids. What YouTube Kids is, is a version of YouTube that has age appropriate material on it.
- [05:35]
Kyra Kelly
So I can't look up any old stuff, stuff online.
- [05:37]
Jess Kelly
These are small little tools, they already exist. And what I found fascinating speaking with Garth and Mindy is they highlighted that and they accepted that it could be easier to access and to instigate these. So they're changing the design. So rather than having to click through multiple ports, it'll now be a three click approach. It is very simple, very straightforward and as I said, it's completely free.
- [05:58]
Kyra Kelly
Just got a text in. I use this for my kids. They get two hours max a day and only on weekends. Tablet doesn't turn it on otherwise. So some, some people are listening to you, Jess out there. Tell me, what role do these kind of solutions play in terms of, you know, Ireland's approach to keeping kids safe online and the use of the digital age verification and the context of these social media bans for the under 16s that we keep hearing about. Yeah, we're told are a good idea and are not a good idea in various parts of the world.
- [06:23]
Jess Kelly
Yeah. So the outright ban has happened in Australia. It's, it's, there's conversations and debates about happening elsewhere in the world. Personally speaking, I'm not a fan of them. I don't think they are the perfect solution as we know we are going down the route initially of the digital age verification, which is a more ingrained version because this will be on the phone, on the device the child uses. Right. So the digital age verification is a blanket version of the Google family link to a certain extent because what it does is it prevents children from getting access to content that's not appropriate. So for me this is something that it's an example of a technological tool that gives kids access to the technology but with safe parameters around it. I firmly believe the technological solutions have a huge role to play here and I ask Garth for his view on blanket vans.
- [07:16]
Dr. Garth Graham
So, you know, we often talk about this idea of it's about helping kids navigate in the digital world, not from the digital world. Another example, if I waited till my son was 16 to start having him ride a bicycle, there's so much he would have missed out when he was younger. But also his skills and capacities would have been delayed more years had he been given kind of that gradated experience. And so, you know, thinking through how we allow our kids to learn and utilize technology well, especially in these more formative years, can have so much benefit as they grow. Rather than thinking you're going to keep them in the barn and then when they're 16, all of a sudden they're going to have all these capacities. So being able to kind of grow appropriately and as a parent guide, that growth is kind of our number one job as parents. Especially in the world of video, there is so much learning. You know, I was just watching my son the other day doing some stuff around coding and I'm like, what? Kids do that stuff nowadays? And so, you know, there's so much you can learn and the world can be opened up to you, I think, through the power of video. So allowing kids to be able to have that learning experience, I think is particularly important. And then their ability to feel confident with digital tools, that's another component where we just, we have to have kids understand that these aid in your development. They aid in having them be so much better than we were even as parents. So digital literacy and all of that is particularly important.
- [08:53]
Shane Coleman
I think what you also see in the literature, just as I'm a researcher by training and you see in the literature that it's about the quality of the experience. It's not about exclusivity or cutting kids out. It's about the good content. You learn more in those experiences. So I think it's really important to balance that, that there's good information, there's good content, it can help kids find their niche like you, and really be able to grow and develop a career.
- [09:21]
Kyra Kelly
And I suppose, finally, Jess, in terms of takeaways, what have we learned?
- [09:25]
Jess Kelly
I think we have learned that there are tools out there that help parents navigate this. I like to think that, you know, there is such a thing as a good experience for young people online, but they need to be accessing age appropriate content. There needs to be a level of supervision. So, for example, if the child is watching something on YouTube, kids or playing a game or whatever it is, that they're doing it in the family room, that the parents are engaging with the digital lives, that the first time you, the parent, engage with your child is not when something goes wrong. And I think by utilizing some of the digital tools that are out there, not only do you get better peace of mind, but your child is also then safeguarded from some of the harmful content that is available in the wild west of the Internet. It's not the perfect solution, just as the digital age verification isn't the perfect solution, but these are stepping stones to a healthier online experience for our young people.
- [10:23]
Kyra Kelly
Yeah, you're absolutely right. Maybe before you go, text has come in for you. Can you ask Jess, please, can you use Family Link when the parent has an Android phone and the child has an iPhone?
- [10:32]
Jess Kelly
You can, yeah. So if you. The child would still need to have a Gmail address associated, but yes, you can.
- [10:38]
Kyra Kelly
Yeah, good stuff. Thank you for that, Jess. We shall chat to you again next week.
- [10:41]
Shane Coleman
The Hard Shoulder with Kira Kelly and
- [10:44]
Jess Kelly
Shane Coleman with the MG Hybrid and Electric range.
- [10:47]
Kyra Kelly
Weekdays at 4 on News Talk.
- [10:51]
Shane Coleman
Conversation that counts.