US Senate Set to Pass Landmark Legislation to Protect Children from Harmful Online Content
The US Senate is expected to pass a significant piece of legislation on Tuesday aimed at protecting children from dangerous online content, marking Congress’s first major effort in decades to hold tech companies accountable for the harm they cause.
The bill, which has broad bipartisan support, has been championed by parents of children who died by suicide following online bullying. It mandates that companies take reasonable steps to prevent harm on platforms frequently used by minors, requiring them to exercise a “duty of care” and default to the safest settings possible.
Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, who co-authored the bill with Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, emphasized that the legislation is about empowering children, teens, and parents to regain control of their online lives. He stated, “This bill sends a clear message to big tech that we no longer trust them to make decisions for us.”
The House of Representatives has not yet taken action on the bill, but Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has indicated that he will review it and seek consensus. Supporters are hopeful that a strong Senate vote — a test vote last week passed with an 86-1 margin — will encourage the House to act.
If enacted, the legislation would require companies to mitigate harm to children, including bullying, violence, promotion of suicide, eating disorders, substance abuse, sexual exploitation, and advertisements for illegal products such as narcotics, tobacco, or alcohol. Social media platforms would need to provide minors with options to protect their information, disable addictive features, and opt out of personalized algorithmic recommendations. They would also have to limit communication with children from other users and features that extend platform use, such as autoplay and platform rewards.
Blumenthal and Blackburn’s goal is for platforms to be “safe by design.” They have sought to balance increased responsibility for what children see online with the need to protect freedom of expression and avoid potential legal challenges.
Despite some concerns about access to information on LGBTQ+ issues or reproductive rights, the bill has been revised to address these issues, gaining support from major LGBTQ+ groups.
The legislation represents the first major tech regulation package in years. While there has been bipartisan agreement that the largest tech companies need more government oversight, consensus on how to achieve this has been elusive. Earlier this year, Congress passed legislation targeting China-based social media company TikTok, but this new bill addresses a broader range of companies and issues.
Some tech companies, including Microsoft, X, and Snap, support the bill. Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, has not taken a position. Snap praised the bill last week, stating, “The safety and well-being of young people on Snapchat is a top priority.”
The bill also updates child privacy laws, raising the age limit for collecting personal information from users under 13 to 17. It bans targeted advertising to teenagers and allows teens or their guardians to delete a minor’s personal information.
In recent months, Blumenthal and Blackburn have worked closely with parents of children who have died by suicide or been harmed by social media, including through dangerous challenges, extortion attempts, eating disorders, and drug deals. At a recent emotional news conference, these parents expressed their support for the legislation.
Maurine Molak, whose 16-year-old son died by suicide after “months of relentless and threatening cyberbullying,” believes the bill can save lives and urged every senator to vote in favor of it. “Anyone who believes that children’s well-being and safety should come before big tech’s greed ought to put their mark on this historic legislation,” Molak said.
Source: AP
