In a world where most information is just a click away, children everywhere should have free and ready access to accurate and helpful information. Many children still unfortunately don’t have access to verifiable and safe content. With widespread misinformation and those looking to take advantage of our vulnerable youth online, ensuring that children have access to safe, appropriate, and enriching content is more crucial than ever. This issue is at the heart of UNCRC Article 17, which describes and aims to enforce children’s right to information from multiple sources.
What's the core purpose of UNCRC Article 17?
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) Article 17 is written to ensure all children have safe and free access to a variety of sources of information both from their country of residence and abroad. These sources include but aren’t limited to:
- Print Media - such as newspapers or books
- Electronic Media - websites or social media
- Audiovisual Media - things like radio or TV
This aims to provide children with access to unbiased, nuanced, and truthful sources of information so they can develop their viewpoints and knowledge freely as well as grow their cognitive ability in a healthy manner.
The importance of information for children
Why do children need unfettered access to information? Information opens doors to worlds unseen, sparks creativity, and kindles the fires of curiosity. Exposing children to a variety of content is crucial for their intellectual development and boosts their critical thinking, overall increasing their ability to acquire and apply knowledge going forward. Access to information is also important in processing current events, incomplete or biased forms of information can lead to dangerous viewpoints or be detrimental to the mental health of growing minds.
How UNCRC Article 17 protect children from harmful content
With all its wonders and pitfalls, the internet presents a unique challenge to the safety of children's learning. Article 17 acknowledges this, advocating for a digital environment that is enriching yet safe for our youngest netizens and where they’re protected from media that would be harmful to them such as pornography, graphic violence, and irresponsible drug use.
As well as working to provide equal access to media for all children including those whose freedoms are limited or who have other barriers to access such as individuals with disabilities or who don’t speak the language of their resident country, it is the role of governing bodies to ensure media is safe for children, this can be done through rating agencies determining whether content is safe for different audiences, age gates on websites, and legislative measures to ensure content isn’t sent to anyone not an appropriate age to receive it.
How you can make a difference
Whether it's through policy advocacy, supporting organisations like Save the Children, or being a mindful guardian in your own home, your actions can help safeguard the digital future of our children. Donate today to help ensure all children get the education and support they need.