Protecting children and young people from harmful media content has become an increasingly significant challenge today for a variety of reasons. While their digital world is changing rapidly, the legal framework is complex and often convoluted. The landscape is difficult to navigate, as it consists of constitutional obligations to protect minors, youth protection laws, state media treaties, regulatory practices, and European digital regulations.
In his nonfiction book, Dr. Stephan Dreyer systematically examines these structures. He describes how children and adolescents use digital media, assesses the opportunities and risks involved, and highlights the tools available for youth media protection in Germany and Europe. He also identifies the limitations of the existing legal framework in the face of new business models, global platforms, data-driven services, and technological developments that undermine traditional protective mechanisms.
The book focuses on two key questions: What can the law achieve in the digital space, where it is structurally overwhelmed? And what role do other components, such as media education, parental responsibility, and technical design, play? By addressing these topics, which are often discussed separately, the book provides a comprehensive overview of the legal framework for growing up in digital media environments. It serves as an introduction to youth media protection in digital societies and as a guide for those involved in the topic through practice, administration, politics, or academia.
Dreyer, Stephan (2026): Kein Kinderspiel. Jugendmedienschutz in der digitalen Gesellschaft [No Child’s Play: Protecting Minors in the Digital Society]. Stuttgart: Kohlhammer Verlag.
The book has only been published in German.
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