Surgeon general asks Congress for warning label on social media

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) – In a New York Times op-ed piece Monday, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy implored Congress to append a warning label on all social media platforms as a step towards improving the ongoing mental health crisis in young people.

“There is no seatbelt for parents to click, no helmet to snap in place, no assurance that trusted experts have investigated and ensured that these platforms are safe for our kids,” Dr. Murthy wrote. “There are just parents and their children, trying to figure it out on their own, pitted against some of the best product engineers and most well-resourced companies in the world.”

Dr. Murthy also acknowledged that a warning label is just a small step towards making social media “safe for young people.”

The U.S. Surgeon General issued an advisory last year, in which research showed that up to 95% of 13-17 year olds report using a social media platform, with more than a third saying they use social media “almost constantly.”

In his essay, Dr. Murthy referenced the societal responses to 20th-century issues like tobacco use and safe driving measures, or more recently commercial air travel safety. The regulation and implementation of protection from the risks of social media would, in theory, use those historical examples as a road map.

The “strong bipartisan support” for making social media safe for children is a tenet of Dr. Murthy’s confidence that more specific recommendations are achievable. Some examples of such recommendations are the requirement of social media companies to provide all data they have on the health effects of their platforms and allowing independent safety audits.

Legislation and government intervention are not the only suggestions that the surgeon general has for the U.S. He also pointed to groups like Log Off movement and Wired Human that focus on supporting young people in adjusting their relationship with social media.

“We have the expertise, resources and tools to make social media safe for our kids. Now is the time to summon the will to act. Our children’s well-being is at stake,” Dr. Murthy warned.

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