Educate and Protect the Children About Social Media: A Reply to the AMA Advisory on “An Improved Protection for Children and Minorities in the Context of Social Media”

The Advisory offers recommendations for policymakers, technology companies, and researchers on how the harms it cites could be addressed going forward. A common thread among them is to fund and enable more research into the impacts of social media usage, and for social media companies themselves to be more transparent in sharing data with outside experts. Stronger health and safety standards and greater controls on data privacy are some of the suggestions for lawmakers. Tech companies themselves are urged to attempt to minimize the risks of their products.

The surgeon general called on policymakers, researchers and parents to take action to safeguard against potential risks.

The New York Times reported that Dr. Murthy said that adolescents are more than just smaller adults. “They’re in a different phase of development, and they’re in a critical phase of brain development.”

The report noted that “frequent social media use may be associated with distinct changes in the developing brain in the amygdala (important for emotional learning and behavior) and the prefrontal cortex (important for impulse control, emotional regulation, and moderating social behavior), and could increase sensitivity to social rewards and punishments.”

More than one-third of teens use social media almost constantly, and research suggests that up to 95 percent of them use at least one social media platform. The required minimum age for most sites is only 13 for children who are 8 to 12 years old.

We need to set safety standards for social media the way we have for cars, for car seats, for toys, for medications and for other products that kids use, which is why I’m calling for specific action from technology companies.

The Advisory outlines potential benefits of social media for marginalized groups. “Studies have shown that social media may support the mental health and well-being of lesbian, gay, bisexual, asexual, transgender, queer, intersex and other youths by enabling peer connection, identity development and management, and social support,” the report says, noting that online communities can also provide support for youths from racial and ethnic minorities.

He wants tech companies and researchers to do more to understand the vulnerabilities facing young people and find standards to help them stay safe.

He talked about the new advisory, what children are saying about social media and what the government can do to increase regulation.

With safety standards for social media you want to make sure that the kids are protected from beingharassed and from harmful content.