(Washington) The U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passed a bill Tuesday aimed at protecting children from harmful online content, advancing what would be the first major congressional effort in decades to hold tech companies accountable for the harm they cause.
The bill was supported by parents of children who have committed suicide as a result of online bullying or who have been harmed in other ways by online content.
This would require companies to take reasonable steps to prevent harm on online platforms frequently used by minors, requiring them to exercise a “duty of care” and ensure they use the safest possible settings by default.
The House has yet to take up the bill, but Speaker Mike Johnson said he is “committed to working to find consensus.” Supporters hope the Senate’s strong vote will push the House to act before the congressional session ends in January.
PHOTO TIERNEY L. CROSS, ARCHIVES THE NEW YORK TIMES
Mike Johnson, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
The legislation aims to empower children, teens and parents “to regain control of their online lives,” said Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, who authored the bill with Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee.
He said the message to big tech companies is: “We no longer trust you to make decisions for us.”
A path to open
The bill would be the first major set of tech-related regulations to pass in years, and could potentially pave the way for other bills that would strengthen online privacy laws or set parameters for the growing use of artificial intelligence, among other things.
While there has long been bipartisan support for the idea that the largest tech companies should face greater government scrutiny, there has been little consensus on how that should be done.
If the Child Safety Bill becomes law, companies would be required to mitigate harms to children on their platforms, including bullying and violence, promotion of suicide, eating disorders, drug addiction and sexual exploitation, and advertising of illegal products such as drugs, tobacco or alcohol.
To do so, social media companies would have to offer minors options to protect their information, disable addictive product features, and opt out of personalized algorithmic recommendations. They would also be required to prevent other users from communicating with children and limit features that “increase, maintain, or expand the use” of the platform, such as auto-playing videos or the ability to collect rewards.
“Secure by design” platforms
The idea, Blumenthal and Blackburn say, is that platforms should be “secure by design.”
“The message we’re sending to big tech is that kids are not a product,” Marsha Blackburn said at a news conference as the Senate passed the bill.
Children are not a source of profit. And we will protect them in the virtual space.
Marsha Blackburn, Republican Senator from Tennessee
Several tech companies, including Microsoft, X and Snap, have supported the legislation. But NetChoice, a tech industry group that represents X and Snap, as well as Google, TikTok and Meta, called it unconstitutional.
Carl Szabo, the group’s vice president and attorney, said in a statement that “risks related to cybersecurity, censorship and the constitutionality of the law remain unaddressed.” He did not provide details.
In addition to First Amendment concerns, some critics have said the legislation could harm children who would not be able to access information about LGBTQ+ issues or reproductive rights — though the bill has been revised to address many of these criticisms, and major LGBTQ+ groups have moved to support the bill.
The bill also includes an update to children’s privacy laws that prohibit online companies from collecting personal information about users under 13, raising that age to 17. It would also ban targeted advertising to teens and allow teens or their guardians to delete a minor’s personal information.
Save lives
While their bill has been stalled for months, Blumenthal and Blackburn have worked closely with parents of children who have been harmed by social media — whether through cyberbullying or social media challenges, extortion attempts, eating disorders, drug dealing or other potential dangers. At an emotional news conference last week, the parents said they were pleased the Senate was finally moving forward with the bill.
Maurine Molak, the mother of a 16-year-old boy who died by suicide after “months of relentless and threatening cyberbullying,” said she believes the bill has the potential to save lives. She urged all senators to vote for it.
“Anyone who believes that the well-being and safety of children must come before the greed of big tech should support this historic legislation,” Mr.me Molak.