CT-led bill aims to protect kids online
Will bill clear Congress?
As revelations about the harmful toll of social media on children and teens have become public over the past few years, Congress sought to amp up the pressure on Big Tech and pass legislation for the first time in decades to protect minors and hold companies accountable.
Some of those efforts “came heartbreakingly close” to materializing at the end of the year but ultimately faded and got punted to the new session of Congress that started in January.
One of those bills, co-authored by Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., focuses on the safety aspect and gives children and parents greater control over what online content can be viewed.
The issue came to a head when Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen testified before Congress in 2021 about the harmful effects of social media on children and teenagers and how tech giants kept users engaged to turn profits. Lawmakers like Blumenthal believe the growing bipartisan support on this issue could lead to the passage of tech reforms this time around — possibly this year.
Blumenthal is renewing his push for the Kids Online Safety Act with co-author Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn. Over the years, Blumenthal has recounted stories he has heard from parents in Connecticut whose children viewed “extreme” videos on the social media platform TikTok about weight loss, disordered eating and self-harm practices.
Online protections and privacy appear to be a rare issue of bipartisan agreement in Congress, especially in a divided government where there will likely be little compromise with a GOP-led House and Democratic-controlled Senate. But like many efforts on Capitol Hill, it can take a while to navigate the legislative process.
When the lawmakers reintroduce the bill, Blumenthal hopes Congress can quickly act on it, since the Senate is mostly focused on confirming judicial nominations.
“We should do it quickly, because we have the time right now. We have judges, which is important to do, but we don’t have legislation right now to put on the floor, and I’m absolutely convinced that this legislation will pass overwhelmingly,” Blumenthal said in an interview.
“Kids deserve protection. Parents need tools. Both parents and kids have to be given control back over their lives,” he added. “My basic belief is there’s no real partisan divide on consumer protection.”
Tech companies largely avoided major reforms when Congress negotiated its end-of-the-year package to fund the federal government through September. Other than a measure to ban TikTok from government devices, lawmakers were unsuccessful in a last-minute lobbying effort to get into the spending bill both the Kids Online Safety Act and a bill that would update an existing law to extend privacy to users between ages 13
and 16.
Despite these challenges, Blumenthal believes Congress can once again take up tech-related bills like the Kids Online Safety Act and potentially get it done as early as this year, though the timeline is very fluid.
“A bill takes a while — sometimes more than one session, sometimes many sessions — to get the gravitas and support it needs,” he said. “It was an artificial bind we confronted with the omnibus. Most legislation shouldn’t depend on that kind of vehicle, so that’s why I’m more hopeful.”
Blumenthal zeroes in on Big Tech
Blumenthal has made tech-related legislation a major part of his congressional portfolio.
First introduced in early 2022, the Kids Online Safety Act aims to put in place stricter settings on online sites used by minors by allowing children and parents to disable addictive features, enable privacy settings and opt out of algorithmic recommendations. It also requires these companies to conduct an
annual independent audit to analyze the risks to minors and see if they are working to reduce it.
The bill establishes a “duty of care” for websites that are likely used by young individuals “to act in the best interests of a minor” in matters related to mental health disorders, addiction-like behaviors, physical violence, online bullying, sexual exploitation and the promotion of narcotic drugs or “predatory, unfair or deceptive marketing practices.”
As children face a growing mental health crisis, those questioning Big Tech are hoping to limit minors’ exposure to content that can lead to eating disorders, self-harm or substance abuse.
Many of these efforts have been recognized by President Joe Biden, who renewed his support for legislation that reins in tech companies during his State of the Union address. And in a Wall Street Journal op-ed from earlier this year, he wrote that he wanted “Democrats and Republicans to come together to pass strong bipartisan legislation to hold Big Tech accountable.” But
he has not mentioned specific legislation by name.
“We must finally hold social media companies accountable for the experiment they are running on our children for profit,” Biden said in his February address. “And it’s time to pass bipartisan legislation to stop Big Tech from collecting personal data on kids and teenagers online, ban targeted advertising to children and impose stricter limits on the personal data these companies collect on all of us.”
In addition to KOSA, Blumenthal supports a host of other reforms regarding online privacy and competition. He has sponsored the Open App Markets App, which would prohibit companies with more than 50 million users in the U.S. from requiring app developers to use inpayment payment systems managed by that company.
And he is an original cosponsor of several other bills that would reshape the tech landscape.
An update to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, known as COPPA 2.0, would ban targeted advertising to minors and extend protections to users between ages 13 and 16. Another bill, the Clean Slate for Kids Online Act, would allow users to request the deletion of personal information collected before age 13. He also supports bills, like the EARN IT Act, to reform Section 230, which grants tech companies immunity from lawsuits over content.
Critics sound alarm about content moderation
Other concerns run much deeper about the online safety legislation.
Dozens of organizations wrote a letter last November to Senate Democratic leadership about keeping the bill out of the year-end spending bill. Even after it was amended, seven civil liberties and LGBTQ rights groups still expressed concerns a month later.
Organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union and the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network commended the overall goals but warned about “significant parental surveillance” of vulnerable kids and teens. They believe it could have “unintended consequences” when it comes to content filtering and limited access to information for vulnerable children in abusive situations and LGBTQ youth.
To quell concerns, Blumenthal and Blackburn made updates to the bill. The new text clarified the “duty of care” section, stipulating that companies “shall act in the best interests” of known minors using their site and that they need to “take reasonable measures in its design and operation of products and services to prevent and mitigate” harm.