Congress must protect children on social media, before it's too late

Social media has fundamentally changed how Americans - especially our children - interact with one another. It has created virtual outlets for expression and forums for like-minded individuals to share ideas and interact with those who have common interests.

As a father of two and the grandfather to six young children, I appreciate how social media can help keep our loved ones connected, but I've also witnessed it evolve into an existential threat to young Americans. This threat serves as a thoroughfare for abusive, unhealthy and explicit material. If you combine this exposure to harmful content with a raging youth mental health crisis, you end up with a dangerous combination that could impact generations of Americans.

I recently hosted a community seminar in Henrico County on this pressing issue, where we convened parents, teachers and community members to hear from representatives with the Children's Hospital of Richmond, Henrico County Public Schools and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. These experts sparked a critical dialogue and shared online safety resources to protect our young people.

The toxic impact of social media on children is recognized almost universally, from lawmakers and medical professionals to child development and education associations. Yet social media companies still refuse to act. Across the ideological and political spectrums, there is broad consensus that social media has a detrimental impact on the development of our children's minds and well-being, and increases the risk of exposure to drugs, sexually explicit material and child predators.

The toxic impact of social media on children is recognized almost universally, from lawmakers and medical professionals to child development and education associations. Yet social media companies still refuse to act. Across the ideological and political spectrums, there is broad consensus that social media has a detrimental impact on the development of our children's minds and well-being, and increases the risk of exposure to drugs, sexually explicit material and child predators.

Let's start with what Congress can do. Congress must pass, and the president must sign into law two bills - the Kids Online Safety Act, or KOSA, and Sammy's Law, both of which I'm proud to cosponsor. KOSA, which will protect minors' information online and creates a responsibility for social media platforms to prevent and mitigate harm to minors, has broad bipartisan support in both the House and the Senate. Sammy's Law, named after a young man who died of a fentanyl overdose after being contacted on social media by a drug dealer, requires social media platforms to give third-party safety apps access to data that will help them alert parents when children are exposed to dangerous content.

Social media companies must take immediate action to protect our children. If they don't, Congress will. That includes the better shielding of minors from harmful content, requiring parental consent depending on age and content, and requiring opt-ins - not opt-outs - for data tracking. Social media executives have already testified before Congress that they can do more to protect children - they just need to do it.

Finally, there are plenty of resources for parents and steps they can take to keep their children safe on social media. Parents should have discussions with their children to inform them of the potential harms of social media, while also building a rapport that makes kids feel comfortable talking about their online experiences. Setting limits, particularly on platforms that count likes or other metrics, will reduce excessive use. Parents should also ensure the settings on their children's social media apps and electronics are appropriate and prevent invasive data gathering such as location tracking.

Just like the airbags in cars or smoke detectors in our homes, we have always adapted to new threats and applied commonsense solutions to mitigate risks of harm. We need to do the same for our kids on social media. Our children can't wait much longer for us to act.

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