A bipartisan group of US senators, including Republican Senator Tom Cotton and Democratic Senator Chris Murphy, has proposed a bill that would ban all American children under the age of 13 from using social media.
The four senators who proposed the legislation, including Senators Katie Brett and Brian Schatz, say they believe they “represent the millions of American parents who are deeply concerned that social media is so unrestricted in what it can do for their children.”
Their bill, titled the Child Social Media Protection Act, calls for a minimum age of 13 for users on social media sites, parental consent and age verification for users under the age of 13. 18 years old.
Cotton, one of the most vocal conservatives in the Republican Party, acknowledged that there is a broad bipartisan consensus on controlling social media, which is evident in his meeting with the other three senators.
“This is a cause that unites parents across the country, regardless of their political views on other matters,” he said.
Other bills targeting social media have been pushed recently by bipartisan teams of senators.
A bill proposed Wednesday by Sen. Ed Markey and Sen. Bill Cassidy aims to “expand protections for children’s online privacy, prevent companies from collecting personal data from younger teens and ban advertising directed at children and teens,” according to “Fox News.”
Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn and Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal, two lawmakers with differing political views, proposed a social media bill called Safer and More Transparent Platforms by Design last year and resubmitted it to the Senate this week.
According to “Fox News”, their bill would “force companies to give minors the option to disable addictive product features and algorithms and enable child safety settings by default.”
