The Florida Legislature passed a sweeping social media bill that would make the state the first to effectively ban anyone under 16 from having an account on platforms like TikTok and Instagram.
The bill, which Gov. Ron DeSantis said he would “work on” over the weekend and has yet to sign, could be life-changing for millions of Florida's young people.
It will likely also face constitutional challenges. A federal court has blocked less restrictive youth social media laws enacted last year in Arkansas and Ohio. The judges in those cases said the new law would most likely violate the free speech rights of social media companies to distribute information and the rights of young people to access it.
New Florida rules passed Thursday require social networks to prohibit users under 16 from registering accounts and those who know or believe the platform belongs to a minor user. It requires you to both terminate your account. This may apply to apps and sites with certain features, such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, and YouTube.
Last year, Utah, Arkansas, Texas and Ohio enacted laws requiring social media platforms to obtain parental permission before giving accounts to minors under 18 or 16.
Florida's efforts go a step further with a blanket ban on some of the most popular social media apps for young people. Platforms will also be prohibited from displaying content that is harmful to minors, including “patently offensive” sexual acts.
on friday, DeSantis said: He said he believed social media was a “net negative” for young people, but that with parental supervision it could have a beneficial effect.
“We need to strike the right balance between policies that help parents get where they want to go and policies that can completely crush them,” he said.
Civil liberties groups and technology industry trade groups say the new state measures could significantly limit young people's access to important information and communities, and change how they communicate with friends and family. Opposes social media regulation.
Florida's action is so far the most extreme example of a growing national trend. Many parents, pediatricians and politicians are concerned about the potential mental health and safety risks that long-term social media use poses to young people. As a result, state and federal lawmakers and regulators are increasing scrutiny of social media companies and stepping up efforts to regulate them.
In a politically polarized landscape, social media enforcement is notable for its bipartisan nature.
Attorneys general from more than 40 states recently sued Meta, the company that owns Instagram and Facebook, accusing the company of unfairly trapping children and adolescents and misleading the public about their safety. (Meta has spent a decade making the online experience safe and age-appropriate for teens, and the state's lawsuit uses “selective quotes and cherry-picked documentation to explain the nature of our work.”) (This is incorrect.)
Separately, Democratic and Republican-led states have recently passed a flurry of bills requiring social media companies to reduce risks to young people and give parents more control over their children's online activities. .
Apps like Snapchat and Instagram already have policies in place that prohibit users under 13 from using their apps. That's because the federal Children's Online Privacy Protection Act requires certain online services to get parental permission before collecting personal information such as name, contact information, location, and selfies. — From children under 13 years of age.
But state regulators say millions of underage children were able to sign up for social media accounts simply by providing fake dates of birth. Supporters of the Florida law say it solves the problem by requiring social media companies to verify the age of all users before granting them an account. Under the measure, companies would have to deny accounts to people who cannot verify their age.
Conservative policy experts hailed Florida's move, saying it would reduce the peer pressure many parents feel about giving their children social media accounts and reduce the social pressure that many parents feel about giving their children social media accounts. He said it would also ease parents' fears of becoming isolated.
“Florida's social media bill is a groundbreaking step in protecting children from the harms of social media,” said Roberts, a senior policy analyst at the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington, and a member of several said Claire Morrell, who has been working with state lawmakers. Regarding the parental rights bill. “By making social media for children under 16 no longer optional, we provide a necessary collective solution.”
Civil liberties groups have warned that these social media restrictions could prevent teens from doing everyday activities such as watching news videos on apps like TikTok, Instagram and YouTube. And they say it can prevent young people from seeking out information and community on issues such as political organizing, reproductive health and gender identity.
