Rob Bonta, Attorney General of the state of California, United States, has presented a bill that seeks to force social networks to add warning labels that alert about the effects on mental health that they can cause in minors. The legislative initiative is known as AB 56 and is supported by Assemblywoman Rebecca Bauer-Kahan.
The promoters of the regulations explain that subscribers, especially children and adolescents, must have access to clear information about the harmful effects that the use of services can cause. social media. They suggest that companies like Meta, Snap, ByteDance or X should show warnings about this to users of all ages when they log in for the first time. After this, notifications will have to be sent weekly. On each occasion, they will remain on the screen for at least 90 seconds, without the possibility of being skipped.
Social media addiction
The proposal is based on the provisions of the Cyberbullying Protection and Online Violence Prevention laws, currently in effect in California. Both regulations include provisions that oblige social networks to report on their protocols to avoid, detect and contain cyberbullying and the dissemination of violent materials.
Bonta alleges that “social media corporations have demonstrated their unwillingness to address the mental health crisis. “They have dedicated themselves to maximizing addictive features and harmful content for profit.” He adds that warning labels are an “equitable and transparent way” to address the problem. “They are another tool in the box to put a stop to it and protect future generations,” he adds.
A report from the United States Department of Health and Human Services indicates that the minimum age to use digital communication spaces in the country is 13 years old. Despite this, it reveals that almost 40% of minors between 8 and 12 years old are members of one of these platforms. It warns that subscribers who browse more than three hours a day on spaces such as Facebook, Instagram or TikTok “are exposed to a double risk of experiencing mental health problems.” It cites some disorders such as depression, anxiety, sleep disorders and difficulties relating to the environment.
“Social media has created systems designed to keep our children relentlessly occupied, at the expense of their mental health. “This bill sheds light on these harms and ensures that families have access to critical information to make decisions,” says Bauer-Kahan.
Vivek Murthy, the US surgeon general, said earlier this year that big tech They should adopt a labeling system to warn about their possible negative effects on psychological well-being. The proposal was presented to Congress and supported by 42 attorneys general, including Bonta.
Health authorities around the world have expressed concern about the excessive use of social networks among the younger population. Some countries have started taking drastic measures to deal with the situation. In Australia, a draft law has been approved that seeks to prohibit the use of these virtual spaces by people under 16 years of age. The control mechanisms included in this initiative surpass in rigor any other existing regulatory scheme, according to specialists.
Companies in the sector have said that the institution of strict vetoes does not represent a real solution to the problem. They justify that these scenarios could generate chaos and cause a massive migration of users to more dangerous and less regulated sites. Documentary filmmaker Lauren Greenfield has refuted the position. In an interview with WIRED, he maintains that “technology is important for many reasons, but the current engineering of apps social is an unsustainable situation. It is not fair to ask teenagers to self-regulate when the platforms have been designed to create addiction.”
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