Jefferson Reporter

U.S. Senator Katie Britt addressed the Senate floor, emphasizing the urgent need for updated social media legislation to protect young Americans. Her bipartisan proposal, the Kids Off Social Media Act, aims to tackle the mental health crisis linked to social media usage among youth.

Senator Britt presented alarming statistics connecting social media with declining mental health in adolescents: “Emergency room visits amongst adolescents for anxiety, mood disorders and self-harm have all risen dramatically in the years since social media apps exploded onto the scene. Over that same time period and during the second decade of this century, rates of depression amongst teenagers more than doubled. By 2019, 20% of teenagers agreed with the notion that, quote, ‘life often feels meaningless,’ almost a 100% increase from a decade earlier. According to the CDC in 2021 . . . 1 in 3 high school young women said she actually considered death by suicide; 25% of teenage girls made a plan to do so; 9% of high schoolers and 13% of teenage girls actually attempted death by suicide.”

Britt criticized Congress's lack of action on social media regulation: “While social media companies have taken some steps, it is clear that there is work for Congress to do. The last time a United States president signed a major piece of legislation addressing children and the internet was, wait for it, 1998. Almost 30 years ago, the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act was signed into law. For reference, at that time that the law was signed, MySpace didn’t even exist. It’s time for an update and there is a clear place to start.”

Last week, Britt participated in a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on fentanyl where witnesses like Jaime Puerta and Bridgette Norring shared their experiences of losing loved ones due to fentanyl obtained through Snapchat.

Recently reintroduced by Senators Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), and Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), alongside Britt, this legislation has passed out of the Senate Commerce Committee and awaits full Senate consideration.

Discussing her bill's provisions, Britt stated: “The Kids Off Social Media Act would also prevent platforms from feeding targeted content picked by an algorithm to users under the age of 17. For anyone who’s curious about why that’s in the bill, all you have to do is ask a teenager, especially a teenage girl. Former U.S. Senate Surgeon General Vivek Murthy wrote that nearly half of all adolescents say that social media makes them feel worse about their bodies.”

Britt concluded by expressing support from parents nationwide: “a survey conducted by the Count on Mothers group showed that over 90% of mothers agreed that there should be a minimum age of 13 on social media platforms, and 87% of mothers agreed that social media companies should not be allowed to use personalized algorithms to deliver content to our children . . . There is nothing more important we can do as a body than protect the people we serve. So let’s do it. Let’s get the Kids Off Social Media Act through Congress and to the President’s desk."

Senator Britt's complete remarks are available online.