Senate Hearing on Kids' Safety



"Squid Game,"" a dystopian South Korean horror series, has been the most-watched television series on Netflix. However it is rapidly becoming controversial.



The latest controversy to arise about "Squid Game," which is rated TV-MA in United States, relates to the excitement it has created among children. An Australian school warned that kids who are as young as 6 years old are playing the same games that were featured in the gory and dark series.



After receiving reports that "young people are copying games and violence from the show" a council in Southern England sent an email to parents, informing them to be "vigilant". Similar warnings were issued in Australia by teachers from Western Australia and Sydney.



The "Squid Game" is a show where characters compete for cash prizes by taking part in challenges that enhance traditional Korean games for children. The "losers," however, are killed at the conclusion of every round. These games, which highlight the show's bizarre approach to children's play, are played in highly stylized arenas, such as an adult-sized playground. After each challenge these traditional children's play spaces are often left soaked in blood and littered with piles of corpses. The show is certainly a craze within children's digital culture.



A variety of popular channels on YouTube Kids (designed for viewers younger than 12) have profited from the "Squid Game" trend. This YouTube content includes How To Draw "Squid Game", character videos, and gameplay videos with "Squid Game" themes from Roblox.



This video game, which is very popular with children, allows players to create games and share them with other players.



"Squid Game" is now a popular theme in these user-programmed Roblox games. Many "Squid Game" Roblox videos have hundreds of thousands or even millions of views.



On both the kids' and main version of YouTube videos targeted at children showcase users (often children) playing these "Squid Game" inspired games in Roblox and Minecraft, with the "Red Light, Green Light" challenge becoming a wildly popular trend. This challenge is also trending on TikTok and users are playing the game in a variety of real life settings and in videogames Roblox and Minecraft.



The "Red Light, Green Light" scene has become one of "Squid Game's" most shared moments: The giant animatronic doll acting as a deadly motion sensor in this game has been extensively made into a meme. This doll is often featured in thumbnails on YouTube videos for "Squid Game" and other related content for children.



These YouTube videos featuring children are pretty harmless. These videos show how "Squid Game," a digital content platform specifically targeting young children, has managed to get its hands on digital content. However the distinction between adult-oriented and child-oriented content online were never clear.



YouTube has been the focus of many controversies over inappropriate content targeted towards children.https://minecraft-survival-servers.co/ TikTok is also affected by similar concerns about children's safety and inappropriate content being seen by children. TikTok gives full access to the app for youngsters older than 13 but reports show children much younger are using it. Alongside YouTube, TikTok is currently being investigated by a U.S. Senate hearing on kids' safety.



After a historic fine of $170 million issued to YouTube by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission in the year 2019, major changes were introduced to make the distinction between adult and children's content clearer on the platform. For instance, creators are now required to be able to inform YouTube whether their content is intended for children and machine-learning is used to determine videos that clearly target young audiences.



Despite these modifications, YouTube remains a very different beast from broadcast television. The content popular with children on both the main and children's version of the platform may differ significantly from children's TV.



YouTube content for children that riffs off "Squid Game characters and scenes continues a long-standing trend of "mashups" content for children.



Like "Squid Game" content, "mashup" videos harness trending themes, search terms and characters - usually featuring popular characters in thumbnail imagery and video titles.



The rising global panic about children's participation in "Squid Game" challenges echoes the "Momo" phenomenon of 2018 and 2019. A picture of a sinister looking image went viral on the internet. The photo was actually an actual Japanese sculpture.



A global news story broke about "Momo," claiming the creature was featured in children's content on YouTube and urging children to participate in deadly games and challenges.



As is currently happening in relation to "Squid Game," official warnings were issued to parents regarding the "Momo Challenge," advising them to be on guard. It soon became apparent that the "Momo Challenge" was likely to be an online hoax.



Momo was an emblem of parents' worst fears about children's internet use. Concerns about "Squid Game's" influence on children's lives have the same tenor This might not be a response to actual dangers, but rather a expression of our displeasure with the ease that adult-oriented content can infiltrate online content aimed at young children.



The streaming media's inter-generational appeal is a clear example of how streaming media is challenging the traditional notions of "child-appropriate content."



Adult fears regarding "Squid Game's" negative influence on children stem from earlier concerns about this "mashup" content but also concern children's interactions with the internet more generally.



This article was reproduced by The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. The original article here.



Jessica Balanzategui is a senior lecturer in screen studies and cinema at Swinburne University of Technology in Hawthorn, Victoria, Australia. She is funded by the Australian Children's Television Foundation.