ICYMI: The Times Union Editorializes In Favor of Sen Gounardes' Child Internet Safety Legislation

ALBANY, NY (10/23/2023) (readMedia)-- Last week, the Times Union published an editorial in support of Senator Andrew Gounardes' new legislation to help keep children safe on the internet and prevent dangerous mental health consequences of addictive social media platforms. The Editorial Board, backing both the SAFE for Kids Act and the New York Child Data Protection Act, cites the copious amounts of studies that reveal increased rates of depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, and self-harm among children and young adults due to increased social media use. The two new pieces of legislation, both sponsored by Senator Gounardes, aim to protect children online by limiting addictive features of social media platforms that are known to harm their mental health and development, and prohibiting online platforms from collecting and sharing their personal data.

The Board wrote:

"This is not a free-speech issue, but a simple matter of responsible regulation of a multibillion-dollar industry - one that Congress seems unwilling to seriously engage with unless the platform in question is being targeted by their favorite demagogue.

Study after study has made it clear that the spiking levels of anxiety and other deleterious mental conditions among young people are driven at least in part by the explosion of social media platforms competing for impressionable and developing minds. At worst, the consumption of this content can contribute to various forms of online bullying, depression and suicidal thoughts - or worse.

Tech companies complain that proving the age and identity of a child can be burdensome and pose privacy issues. We are confident that an industry as technologically evolved as this can work with regulators to find a workable solution to this challenge. Lawmakers who are beginning to plan their agendas for the 2024 legislative session would do well to consider these bills for fast action. Isn't the mental health of children worth it?"

Read the entire Editorial here.

In addition to having the support of the TU Editorial Board, earlier this month Governor Kathy Hochul and Attorney General Letitia James joined Senator Gounardes in support of prioritizing these bills in the upcoming legislative session.

Background on the new legislation:

Bill #1: Stop Addictive Feeds Exploitation (SAFE) for Kids Act

The SAFE for Kids Act will require social media companies to restrict the addictive features on their platforms that most harm young users. Currently, platforms supplement the content that users view from the accounts they follow by serving them content from accounts they do not follow or subscribe to. This content is curated using algorithms that gather and display content based on a variety of factors. However, algorithmic feeds have been shown to be addictive because they prioritize content that keeps users on the platform longer. Addictive feeds are correlated with an increase in the amount of time that teens and young adults spend on social media and significant negative mental health outcomes for minors.

To address this problem, the legislation will:

• Ban social media platforms from offering addictive feeds to any persons under 18 without parental consent. Instead, users will receive a chronological feed of content from only the users that they already follow or feeds of generally popular content – the same way that social media feeds functioned before the advent of addictive feeds. Users may also search for specific topics of interest.
• Prohibit social media platforms from sending notifications to minors from 12AM and 6AM without verifiable parental consent.
• Allow users and parents to opt out of minors accessing social media platforms between the hours of 12AM and 6AM.
• Authorize the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) to bring an action to enjoin or seek damages or civil penalties of up to $5,000 per violation. Allow any parent/guardian of a covered minor to sue for damages of up to $500 per user per incident, or actual damages, whichever is greater.

This legislation will only impact social media platforms with feeds comprised of user-generated content along with other material that the platform recommends to users based on data it collects from them. For example, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and YouTube would all be subject to this legislation.

Bill #2: The New York Child Data Protection Act

With few privacy protections in place for minors online, children are vulnerable to having their location and other personal data tracked and shared with third parties. To protect children's privacy, the New York Child Data Protection Act will prohibit all online sites from collecting, using, sharing, or selling personal data of anyone under the age of 18 for the purposes of advertising, unless they receive informed consent or unless doing so is strictly necessary for the purpose of the website. For users under 13, this informed consent must come from a parent. The bill authorizes OAG to enforce the law and may enjoin, seek damages, or civil penalties of up to $5,000 per violation.

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