For something we spend so much of our lives looking at, we have surprisingly little say over what appears on our social media feeds.
Now, that could soon change, with the Australian government proposing new laws that would give social media users a choice to switch off algorithmic recommendations and see content from the accounts we have actually chosen to follow.
What would change?
Under the proposed laws, platforms including Instagram, TikTok and Facebook would have to give users the choice between an algorithm-driven feed and one that shows content from accounts they follow. Users could also switch between the two, meaning opting out wouldn’t have to be permanent.
The proposal forms part of the government’s broader ‘Digital Duty of Care’ plan, which requires online platforms to take greater responsibility for foreseeable harms on their services. It’s the latest in a series of Australian laws aimed at making social media platforms more accountable, following the under-16 social media ban, which came into effect in December 2025.
The move is a response to growing concern about the role algorithms play in shaping what we see online. Unlike simply following an account, algorithmic feeds can continually introduce us to content we didn’t ask for. This has been a particular concern for Teach Us Consent founder Chanel Contos, whose #FixOurFeeds campaign called for recommendation algorithms to become opt-in rather than the default. Contos launched the campaign in December 2025 in response to what she described as the algorithms’ role in exposing young men and boys to increasingly extreme misogynistic content. While the government’s proposal doesn’t go as far as making algorithms opt-in by default, it does give users a choice over whether they participate in personalised recommendations.
Would an algorithm-free feed actually work?
As Communications Minister Anika Wells acknowledged, algorithms can be useful – introducing us to music, brands, ideas we might not otherwise find – and many people will still want them.
“The reality is that lots of people will want to choose the algorithm,” she said, per the ABC. “That’s their choice. We respect that choice.”
Contos has raised concerns that platforms could make non-algorithmic feeds less appealing or encourage users to switch back. She has pledged to consult with the government on the details of the proposal, before the legislation is finalsied.
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