Group Discussion: The Push For Social Media Warning Labels

Who will be this generation’s Tipper Gore and The Parents Music Resource Center? Apparently 42 state attorneys general, according to a letter sent to congress:

Center Square:

A bipartisan group of state attorneys general sent Congress a letter Monday, urging lawmakers to pass a bill that requires a U.S. surgeon general on every algorithm-driven social media platform.

Forty-two state attorneys general, led by Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum, signed onto the letter. Rosenblum serves as the President of the National Association of Attorneys General.

The move comes as United States Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy called for this to happen in June.

“The mental health crisis among young people is an emergency — and social media has emerged as an important contributor,” Murthy wrote in a New York Times op-ed at the time. “Adolescents who spend more than three hours a day on social media face double the risk of anxiety and depression symptoms, and the average daily use in this age group, as of the summer of 2023, was 4.8 hours. Additionally, nearly half of adolescents say social media makes them feel worse about their bodies.”

“It is time to require a surgeon general’s warning label on social media platforms, stating that social media is associated with significant mental health harms for adolescents,” he added. “A surgeon general’s warning label, which requires congressional action, would regularly remind parents and adolescents that social media has not been proved safe.”

The letter from the Attorneys General comes as social media companies face increased scrutiny for their impact on youth mental health.

In their letter, the elected officials cited evidence that links youth social media use to psychological harm, like depression, anxiety, and even suicidal ideation.

The politicians also noted that these social media platforms have features designed to keep people on their sites longer, including algorithm-based recommendations, infinite scrolling, and constant notifications.

“Last week, we heard from experts from across the nation and across industry, academia, and government,” Rosenblum said. “The message we heard was loud and clear: our youth face challenges we never had to contend with when we were young, and many of those challenges are amplified by the platforms, companies, and features prevalent across social media. We attorneys general—the Peoples’ Attorneys for our country and its territories—strongly urge Congress to take the Surgeon General’s proposed social media platform warnings seriously and hold tech companies to a higher standard of conduct and responsibility.”

Many states have already pursued action against these social media sites for similar reasons. Last year, 45 states, plus Washington D.C., filed various lawsuits against Meta, the parent company of both Facebook and Instagram, while many are also suing TikTok.

“Despite these efforts to address the harms caused by social media platforms, the attorneys general say the need for federal action is critical,” the release said.

The Attorneys General contend that the federal government must take more action because “social media platforms have demonstrated an unwillingness to fix the problem on their own,” the letter said.