MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) – You’re probably familiar with the surgeon general warning on tobacco products. If U.S. Sen. Katie Britt’s “Stop the Scroll” bill passes Congress, a similar warning would pop up every time you open your social media feed.
“The verbiage of the warning would be up to the surgeon general and the FTC and be reviewed by them every 3 years,” Britt explained. “Importantly, the one thing we did mandate was that it had a link to resources.”
Britt, a Republican, teamed up with Democratic Sen. John Fetterman to introduce the bill. It has since been endorsed by another Democratic senator, George Helmy.
“The mental health crisis in front of our nation is not something that is a Democrat or a Republican issue, it is an American issue,” Britt said.
The bill alleges that social media can expose young people to bullying, harassment, and child sexual exploitation. It also claims that addictive algorithms encourage extended use.
According to a study by the Yale School of Public Health, the surgeon general warning on tobacco products saved an estimated 8 million lives in its first 50 years. Britt hopes a warning on social media would have a similar effect.
“The CDC released that 1 in 3 high school young women last year actually considered death by suicide, and then 9% of our high school population attempted death by suicide,” Britt cited. “We are looking to put up the proper guardrails for our children when it comes to social media so they can thrive, and we can actually put the well-being of our children over the profits of social media companies.”
Earlier this year, Britt advocated for the bipartisan “Kids off Social Media Act,” which would set a minimum age of 13 to use social media, as well as prevent “algorithmically targeted content” from showing up on the feeds of those under 17.
There’s also action being taken in the Alabama State Legislature. A bill was pre-filed this week to ban phones in classrooms statewide.
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