“The 360” shows you diverse perspectives on the most important stories and debates of the day.
What is going on
On Tuesday, US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued an advisory call for action to protect children from the potentially harmful effects of social media use on their mental health and well-being.
“We are in the midst of a national youth mental health crisis, and I am concerned that social media is a major driver of that crisis – a crisis we must urgently address,” Murthy said.
While the opinion recognized social media as an effective learning tool for children that can create their own identity, provide support, keep them informed of current affairs and enable them to communicate and form social networks, it also points out numerous studies showing that social media use can be “excessive and problematic” for adolescents and is linked to depression among young people who spend several hours a day on platforms.
The advisory also says that about half of teens between the ages of 13 and 17 say social media makes them feel worse and is “predictive of subsequent declines in life satisfaction at certain developmental stages, including for girls ages 11-13.” and boys 14 years old. 15 years old.” Additionally, 64% of adolescents say social media “often” or “sometimes” exposes them to hate-based content.
One of the advice’s recommendations to ensure a safe and healthy environment is that tech companies should find better ways to meet age minimums based on these studies.
Now, lawmakers in both the House of Representatives and the Senate are finding a rare alignment, backing bills to circumvent social media use — such as raising the minimum age for social media to 16 — as America’s youth continue to grapple with the evolving mental health crisis.
Why there is discussion
The advice says that around 95% of young people, ranging from 13 to 17 years old, use social media. More than a third admit to using social media ‘almost constantly’. As it stands now, on platforms like Instagram, YouTube, Facebook and Snapchat, a potential user must be at least 13 years old to sign up for an account. For TikTok, children under the age of 13 can access the platform, but their user experience is limited.
But the advisory points to studies showing that adolescents have a “highly sensitive period of brain development” between the ages of 10 and 19, when they are more at risk and when an increased risk of mental health problems such as depression and anxiety begin to emerge. Studies show that social media use can also disrupt their sleep patterns, facilitate the spread of rumors and peer pressure, and paint an ‘unrealistic’ picture of other people’s lives that they may be too young to figure out .
“This population is particularly at risk because brain development in our children can make the effects of social media more significant and long-lasting,” Dr. Harold S. Koplewicz, president and medical director of the Child Mind Institute, told Yahoo News in a statement. . “Technology is also changing the way families operate today. We encourage parents and caregivers to communicate regularly with their child and provide tools to help them use social media safely and mindfully.”
Lawmakers like Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., want to provide parents with legislation to “strike back” against Big Tech companies that try to “take advantage of” their children. But opponents worry that politicians are merely campaigning against an agenda that could potentially harm America’s youth by cutting off access to communities that support them.
What’s next
In February, Hawley introduced two sets of bills “to protect children online.” The first bill – the Making Age-Verification Technology Uniform, Robust, and Effective (MATURE) Act – would impose a minimum age of 16 for all social media users, blocking platforms from assigning accounts to children who do not meet those requirements. meet requirement. . The second bill – the Federal Social Media Research Act – would invest in a study to examine the effects of social media on children over the age of 10 and commission a report on the potential harms of social media.
The same month, Rep. Chris Stewart, R-Utah, introduced the Social Media Child Protection Act, which would make it illegal for social media platforms to allow children under 16 to access their sites.
Perspectives
We need to equip children with “effective tools” to navigate social media, not restrict access
“Social media in itself is a tool for gathering information. General statements, such as this one stating that children under the age of 14 should not have access to social media, are not effective tools for changing behavior. We need to give our children the tools they need to navigate the world safely, not prevent them from being exposed to it altogether.” –Dr. Lama Bazzi, Fox News Digital
Children are still developing mentally at the age of thirteen
“Thirteen is too early. … It is a time when it is very important for us to think carefully about what is going on in the way they think about their self-worth and their relationships – and the skewed and often distorted environment of social media often does a disservice to a lot of those kids.” – Surgeon General Vivek Murthy to CNN
It’s just politics as usual
“Technology moves so much faster than Congress. The purpose of this bill is so that Senator Hawley can say, “Look, this is what I proposed to address this problem.” And then there is little action. It’s a way to start a conversation and it’s a way for him to campaign for the ideal of being tough on social media companies.” – Daniel Desrochers, Kansas City Star Washington correspondent, for KCUR
Experts believe that there is a generation of children who are growing up too fast
“When we talk about teenagers in the early stages of adolescence, we are talking about a brain that is under construction. It’s not so much about how they will behave online, but whether they are ready for what they will encounter. Social media opens up a very adult world.” — David Anderson, senior director at the Child Mind Institute, to Wall Street Journal
The youth mental health crisis extends beyond social media
“I think they use social media as a scapegoat. The mental health crisis – there are many factors at play. Yes, social media has shed light on that for some of these kids, but I don’t think blocking or making social media more difficult for kids is really going to have any effect on the mental health problem we have. — Chris Kunkle, parent of three, to USA Today
There are age requirements for anything else that could potentially be harmful to children
“We have countless protections for our children in the physical world – we need car seats and seat belts; we have fences around swimming pools; we have a minimum drinking age of 21; and we have a minimum driving age of 16 years. The damage caused by social media to Generation Z is undeniable – so why are there no protections in the digital world?” – Rep. Chris Stewart, R-Utah, statement
Hawley’s bill puts a veil on the anti-LGBTQ agenda
“Banning social media is not just for the good of children, but rather an extension of the right-wing anti-transgender agenda already in place. Although Hawley mentions suicidality, depression and other mental health issues in his legislation, he and other conservatives are nonetheless focused on the alleged transgender threats lurking in every corner of social media, plotting to emasculate your sons and emasculate your daughters. androgenization. – Alexandra Kauffman, Emory Wheel
