Senators discuss Kids Online Safety Act
JACKSON, Tenn. — Two senators came together for the safety of children.
U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal and Marsha Blackburn were joined by young people, parents of children who died or were harmed because of social media, and experts.
They held a virtual press conference call to discuss kids online safety.
Blumenthal and Blackburn are lead sponsors of the Kids Online Safety Act, which would provide kids and parents with better tools to protect themselves online, hold big tech accountable for harms to kids, and provide transparency into black box algorithms.
“There is no denying that we are in the midst of a mental health crisis in America. It’s a teen mental health crisis,” Blumenthal said.
“It’s become impossible to deny that our children are suffering at the hands of big tech,” Blackburn said.
The bill has 26 additional co-sponsors from both sides of the aisle.
A version of the bill was introduced in February 2022 and was advanced through the Commerce Committee in a unanimous vote in July, but it failed to get to the floor.
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