(The Center Square) – Nearly one in three American children shows signs of social media addiction by the end of middle school, according to a new policy proposal from a Democratic group that says families and state health systems are absorbing the crisis largely without federal help.
Project 2029, a Democratic policy initiative aimed at building an agenda for a future Democratic president, is calling for a sweeping federal online safety agenda that would ban social media accounts for children under 16, require bell-to-bell cellphone bans in schools, and impose new liability rules on AI chatbots.
The proposal calls for social media platforms to open new accounts with the highest privacy settings by default. It would also ban addictive features such as infinite scroll and autoplay for minor users.
On AI, the proposal would prohibit chatbots from presenting themselves as licensed professionals. It would impose strict liability on developers whose products the proposal defines as causing demonstrable harm to users. It also calls for narrowing Section 230 liability protections to exclude paid ads, AI-generated content, and illegal activity the platform knows about.
The paper cites the 2017 death of Molly Russell, a 14-year-old who died by suicide after platforms repeatedly pushed self-harm content to her feed. A formal investigation found the material contributed to her death.
Rishi Bharwani, U.S. director of Reset Tech, a public policy organization focused on technology accountability, said age restrictions are among the most critical tools available to protect minors online.
“No one seriously argues we should drop the drinking age because some teenagers get fake IDs,” he told The Center Square.
The proposal cites at least 42 states and more than 1,000 individual plaintiffs that have filed lawsuits against social media platforms, and notes Congress is considering federal legislation targeting kids’ online safety.
