It’s Time to Pass the Kids Online Safety Act
February 5, 2024
At one pivotal point in the Senate Judiciary Committee’s January 31 hearing on the sexual exploitation of children online, GOP Sen. Josh Hawley challenged Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, to stand up, turn around, and apologize to all the parents packing the audience. Zuckerberg did—and as he turned, he was met with more than a dozen large photos held up by grieving parents of kids who had committed suicide in a bitter attempt to escape their bullying and victimization on social media.
Zuckerberg had the look of a man cornered, but he wasn’t the only witness—he was flanked by the CEOs of four other social media giants: TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), Snap (the parent company of Snapchat), and Discord. And though the dramatic apology recounted above was historic, Wednesday’s hearing was far from the first time executives of Big Tech companies have been dragged in front of lawmakers, resulting in fiery clips that appear on the nightly news. The inevitable question is, will this time be any different? Will something finally be done to better regulate social media platforms for child safety? Though it would be unwise to foretell action by such a polarized Congress, the answer may very well be yes.
