ABSTRACT
Play can be regarded as 'down time' rather than serious business, and in the context of social media this sense of 'wasting time' online is often part of popular discourse. However, play can also be conceptualised as both serious and dangerous if it is part of a process of challenging accepted norms. There is still the problem of the child's best interests to consider, and how that connects with the vested interests that social media providers have in children and young people spending more and more time participating in the public sphere, which is presented by them as an opportunity to interact but which is a manipulative marketplace according to others. The role of social media in 'sexualising' children is one that preoccupies many commentators, scholars and politicians. Sexting can be recognised as a form of play by young people, but which is regarded by many adults as inappropriate sexualised behaviour.
