Tinsel Magazine Publishes 'The Countries Looking Away' on Nations Without Child Online Safety Laws

Concluding Installment Maps the Countries With No Child Online Safety Law, and Brazil, Indonesia and the UAE, Which Passed Theirs in the Past Year

NEW YORK, NY, UNITED STATES, August 31, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Tinsel Magazine has published "The Countries Looking Away," the concluding installment of "The Reckoning," its two-part series reviewing legislation governing children's use of social media platforms. According to the publication, the installment reviews the third of the three categories set out in Part One: jurisdictions that have adopted neither prohibition nor regulation.

The publication has disclosed that the series began with questions raised by Kenneth W. Welch Jr. and the team at Moxie Media Marketing. The magazine notes in its Editor's Note that "the reporting, sourcing, and conclusions are Tinsel's own," and that Welch has asked to be on record that he stands behind the questions raised in the series.

Kenya. According to the article, a citizen petitioned parliament in August 2023 to prohibit TikTok, and the assigned committee responded in February 2026, two and a half years later. Tinsel Magazine reports that parliament declined the prohibition, recommended regulation, and set a four-month deadline for stronger age verification, and that no implementing law has since been passed.

Jurisdictions without legislation. According to the publication, Mexico has no federal law addressing minors and platforms; its government held regional forums during the summer of 2026 toward a future proposal, and President Sheinbaum has stated that a prohibition is not under consideration. The article reports that Argentina has bills in committee and none enacted, that Thailand and the Philippines have drafts and hearings and no law as of this summer, and that Nigeria's House of Representatives passed a child online protection bill in December that remains in the Senate. Tinsel Magazine cites a ten-country assessment published in June 2026 by the digital rights coalition CIPESA, which reported that child-specific platform protections are largely absent across the countries surveyed, and that the African Union's child online safety policy remains non-binding guidance. The publication also cites UNICEF research counting 36 jurisdictions in which age-based restrictions are under discussion, proposed or implemented.

Survey data. Tinsel Magazine reports that Australia's pre-legislation surveys found 84 percent of children aged eight to twelve had used at least one social media or messaging service in the preceding year, most on services carrying a stated minimum age of 13. According to the publication, comparable survey data is not available for jurisdictions that have not conducted such research.

Jurisdictions that have adopted measures. The article reports that Brazil's Congress passed a Digital Statute of the Child and Adolescent, enforceable since March 2026, providing for age verification, adult accountability for children's accounts, and penalties of up to 10 percent of a company's Brazilian revenue. According to Tinsel Magazine, Indonesia ordered platforms including TikTok, Instagram and YouTube to deactivate accounts held by users under 16 under a child protection regulation adopted this spring. The publication reports that the United Arab Emirates brought a Child Digital Safety law into force on January 1, 2026, and issued a Cabinet resolution in June setting a minimum age of 15 for social media accounts, with a compliance period for platforms.

Critical minerals comparison. According to the article, China mined approximately 69 percent of the world's rare earths in 2024 and refined approximately 91 percent of those used in magnets. Tinsel Magazine reports that beginning in 2023 China introduced export restrictions covering gallium and germanium, then graphite and antimony, and in 2025 rare earths and magnets, alongside a rule extending licensing requirements to foreign products containing as little as 0.1 percent Chinese-origin rare earths, which was announced and then suspended before taking effect. According to the publication, automotive production was interrupted by magnet shortages, the European Commission's president publicly criticised the restrictions, and China's commerce ministry stated that export controls are not export bans. The article reports that responses included a G7 critical minerals action plan, EU supply benchmarks, and a US Department of Defense investment in a domestic rare-earth producer.

Welch commented on that comparison. "We have seen this shape before with minerals," said Welch, chief executive of Moxie Media Marketing. "Everyone knows about the dependency, nobody moves, and then everybody moves at once. Attention is running the same course."

The article closes with a further statement from Welch on the period it reviews. "For years the burden sat on parents to prove the harm," Welch is quoted as saying in the piece. "Now it sits on the platforms to prove the safety. Once that flips, it does not flip back."

The full installment is available now at https://tinselmag.com/the-reckoning-part-two/. Part One, "The Ban and the Fine," is available at https://tinselmag.com/the-reckoning-part-one/.

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Sources Cited in the Tinsel Magazine Feature

Citizen Digital, Kenyan parliamentary committee decision, February 2026 — https://www.citizen.digital/article/mps-oppose-tiktok-ban-in-kenya-opt-for-regulations-to-protect-minors-and-local-data-n377654
Presidencia de la Republica (Mexico), regulation forums, July 2026 — https://www.gob.mx/presidencia/prensa/presidenta-anuncia-foros-para-crear-propuesta-de-regulacion-del-uso-de-plataformas-digitales-y-redes-sociales-en-ninas-ninos-y-adolescentes
Infobae, Sheinbaum on a minors' ban, August 2026 — https://www.infobae.com/mexico/2026/08/17/sheinbaum-descarta-prohibir-redes-sociales-a-menores-es-muy-problematico/
Baker McKenzie, Thailand's draft measures, March 2026 — https://www.bakermckenzie.com/en/insight/publications/2026/03/thailand-moves-to-enhance-online-child-safety
Philippine News Agency, Senate on the under-16 bill, 2026 — https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1280096
THISDAYLIVE, Nigeria's stalled bill, May 2026 — https://www.thisdaylive.com/2026/05/27/experts-urge-senate-to-speed-up-passage-of-child-online-safety-bill-amid-rising-digital-threats/
CIPESA, Protecting Children Online in Africa, June 2026 — https://cipesa.org/2026/06/protecting-children-online-in-africa-must-move-from-policy-to-practice/
UNICEF, Drawing a Line in Digital Spaces, March 2026 — https://www.unicef.org/documents/drawing-line-digital-spaces
eSafety Commissioner, children and social media research, February 2025 — https://www.esafety.gov.au/research/children-and-social-media
Agencia Brasil, the Digital Statute in force, March 2026 — https://agenciabrasil.ebc.com.br/en/politica/noticia/2026-03/brazil-digital-statute-protect-minors-online-comes-force
CNBC, Indonesia's 2023 TikTok Shop halt — https://www.cnbc.com/2023/10/04/tiktok-halts-e-commerce-service-in-indonesia-following-ban.html
Jakarta Globe, under-16 account deactivations, March 2026 — https://jakartaglobe.id/news/indonesia-restricts-social-media-access-for-children-under-16
UAE Government, Child Digital Safety law — https://u.ae/en/information-and-services/social-affairs/children/Childrens-digital-safety
USGS, Mineral Commodity Summaries 2025, rare earths — https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2025/mcs2025-rare-earths.pdf
IEA, on supply concentration, October 2025 — https://www.iea.org/commentaries/with-new-export-controls-on-critical-minerals-supply-concentration-risks-become-reality
Holland & Knight, on the April 2025 rare-earth controls — https://www.hklaw.com/en/insights/publications/2025/04/china-imposes-export-controls-on-medium-and-heavy-rare-earth-materials
CSET, translation of MOFCOM Notice 2025 No. 61 — https://cset.georgetown.edu/publication/mofcom-notice-2025-61/
Fortune, Ford on magnet shortages, June 2025 — https://fortune.com/2025/06/13/ford-ceo-says-rare-earth-supply-is-day-to-day-after-plant-halt
Prime Minister of Canada, G7 Critical Minerals Action Plan, June 2025 — https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/statements/2025/06/17/g7-critical-minerals-action-plan
MP Materials, Department of Defense partnership, July 2025 — https://mpmaterials.com/news/mp-materials-announces-transformational-public-private-partnership-with-the-department-of-defense-to-accelerate-u-s-rare-earth-magnet-independence/

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About Moxie Media Marketing

Moxie Media Marketing is a media and talent company led by chief executive Kenneth W. Welch Jr. The company represents and develops independent creators and performers, with a focus on career longevity, professional oversight, and sustainable working standards across live and digital platforms. Moxie originated the questions behind "The Reckoning," Tinsel Magazine's two-part series on how the world's governments have legislated on children and social platforms. Learn more: https://moxiemediamarketing.inc/

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About Tinsel Magazine

Tinsel Magazine is a digital culture publication covering entertainment, style, internet culture, and the people shaping contemporary life. Based in Los Angeles, Tinsel publishes original editorial with a focus on the creative figures, cultural movements, and industry shifts that define modern media. The magazine's Tinsel Exclusive series profiles creators, artists, and cultural figures whose work is redefining their respective fields. For more information, visit https://tinselmag.com/

Broc Foerster
Moxie Media Marketing, Inc.
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