How Unregulated Online Contents Influencing Youths’ Perception

The rapid digital transformation process has led to greater internet availability and smartphone adoption among young people, changing their educational methods, social interactions and perception. The social media platforms, together with video streaming services and internet entertainment platforms, now serve as primary tools that shape people’s opinions, choices and goals. However, the unfiltered online content is posing serious risk. As online content remains unregulated, people often share digital materials online without following ethical standards. So, young minds are exposed to the influence of violent videos, age-inappropriate material, misinformation, hate speech, cyberbullying and dangerous viral trends. This exposure will result in negative outcomes.

The social media platforms like Facebook, TikTok, YouTube and Instagram have gained wide popularity among Bangladeshi youths. The continuous viewing of selected life paths, current fashion trends and the culture of social media influencers creates false expectations about achievement, attractiveness and financial success. The digital space now shapes how young people behave, spend money and build their personal identity, which leads them to compare themselves with others, pursue material possessions and adopt dangerous behaviours to gain social acceptance.
Young people in Bangladesh experience moral value and social behaviour changes due to their exposure to unregulated online content which includes inappropriate material. Continuous exposure to violent content and offensive language together with disrespectful actions creates an environment where people see such behaviours as normal which leads to a decrease in their ability to show empathy, respect to elders and their understanding of different cultures. The environment develops ethical boundaries which become uncertain and make people lose their ability to distinguish between correct and incorrect conduct. Young people require proper guidance because they tend to develop dangerous attitudes which oppose established social customs and their obligations as citizens.
Unregulated online contents of social media platforms can create serious psychological and behavioural effects among youth in Bangladesh. Heavy excessive screen time can result in addiction problems, diminished attention capacity and sleep disturbances. People who watch aggressive or sensational content tend to become more irritable and they start to copy dangerous actions. Online platforms display unrealistic lifestyles which result in people experiencing frustration and low self-esteem and persistent comparison with others. The attention-seeking culture drives people to seek approval through likes and views instead of pursuing real personal development and actual accomplishments.
The unregulated online content now influences how young people view themselves and define success. The rapid exposure of people to edited images and luxury lifestyles together with influencer culture leads to body image problems and it also sets unreasonable beauty standards. People who engage in comparison culture experience a drop in self-esteem while they feel more pressure to achieve a perfect appearance. 
The online presence of explicit and deceptive material leads to relationship understanding errors which affect young people’s ability to comprehend relationships consent and gender roles in Bangladesh. The media presents false images which make dangerous relationships appear attractive while they enable the treatment of people as objects and they destroy the principle of shared dignity.
Students in Bangladesh experience significant academic challenges because, rather than study they spend too much time on screens and access online content without interruption. The process of continuous scrolling together with various digital distractions inhibits those people from maintaining their focus and prevents them from achieving deep concentration while they study. 
The online content which has no regulations will create a greater distance between different generations of families. The excessive use of digital platforms by young people creates a barrier which interrupts their ability to communicate effectively with their parents, resulting in relationship breakdowns and emotional separation. The process of young people encountering different international ways of living and value systems leads them to abandon their native traditions, cultural heritage and their customs of showing respect to elders.
Digital education together with parental monitoring and enhanced internet safety measures need immediate implementation because the harmful online behaviour results in anxiety, depression and decreases personal confidence. Harmful online content remains difficult to manage if there is absence of strong monitoring systems and enforcement of law. The challenge of regulating social media platforms comes from their global operations and their users uncertain responsibilities while the authorities have restricted technical capabilities. Legal systems need development through stronger enforcement methods which enable transparent protection of minors against digital dangers.
For addressing unregulated online content requires both a balanced approach and cooperation between different organisations. Educational institutions should introduce digital literacy programmes from primary level which will teach students how to use the internet in a responsible manner. Parents need to stay involved with their children while they provide guidance for their online activities. The implementation of complete regulatory systems which require platforms to take responsibility for their actions, together with youth counselling programmes, needs to become mandatory. The cooperation between government institutions, educational bodies and family members will create a secure online space which will protect future generations.

The writer is a student of LL.B, Department of Law, World University of Bangladesh