What “Adolescence” on Netflix Teaches Us About Safeguarding Our Children
How Netflix's new series emphasizes on our mission.
Swathi Young
4/13/20252 min read
What “Adolescence” on Netflix Teaches Us About Safeguarding Our Children
At Safeguarding the Future, our mission is clear: raise awareness about the growing threat artificial intelligence and digital platforms pose to children—and build a coalition of parents, educators, policymakers, and technologists to protect them.
Netflix’s gripping new series Adolescence may be fictional, but the dangers it uncovers are anything but. The psychological crime drama follows 13-year-old Jamie Miller, arrested for the shocking murder of his classmate. As the layers unravel, we are confronted with the darker side of the internet: toxic masculinity, online radicalization, and the unfiltered influence of manosphere creators.
This isn’t just storytelling—it’s a wake-up call.
A Mirror to the Digital World Our Kids Live In
The series explores a chilling reality: how impressionable minds are shaped, influenced, and even manipulated in a digital ecosystem lacking guardrails. Jamie’s descent isn’t just about individual decisions—it’s about the algorithms, echo chambers, and communities that groom kids toward extremism while parents, teachers, and society struggle to keep up.
It reminds us why our mission began: to start a global dialogue about the role of digital technology/AI and online systems in shaping childhood—and to determine whether standards like those from the Funder Safeguarding Collaborative can serve as a foundation for collective action.
Conversations around the world:
The show has raised awareness on the topic of safeguarding children against digital harm from The World Economic Forum to the British Premier and New York Times and The Guardian.
The World Economic Forum published a blog to highlight the show’s important message and how to address digital safety.
Below is an image published on this blog, titled “Identifying and addressing digital safety risks requires thorough and proactive risk assessments.”
This showcases how Adolescence has sparked conversations about the influence of online communities on youth behavior and the important work we all have ahead of us.
Key Takeaways and Alignment with Our Mission:
Online Harm Is Real—and Growing
The show’s raw depiction of how easily children can stumble into dangerous content validates our core concern: online harm is not abstract. It’s happening now, and its devastating families.We Need a Unified Response
As echoed by the World Economic Forum’s recent report, collaboration is key. No one actor—government, platform, or parent—can tackle this alone. That’s why we advocate for cross-sector partnerships to safeguard children.Digital Literacy Is Not Optional
Our children deserve more than supervision—they need skills. Adolescence shows what happens when kids lack the tools to question what they see online. We must educate not just youth, but the adults guiding them.Tech Platforms Must Be Accountable
If algorithms are feeding harmful content, the companies behind them must take responsibility. At Safeguarding the Future, we push for stronger accountability and safety-by-design approaches in all digital tools our children use.
A Call to Action
Adolescence is more than entertainment—it’s a warning. It demands that we, as a society, pay attention and act. At Safeguarding the Future, we believe this moment can be a turning point. But only if we choose to respond.
Let’s not wait for another Jamie.
Let’s collaborate. Let’s raise our voices. Let’s safeguard the future—together.