New York Proposal Aims to Protect Kids by Blocking Social Media Algorithms
By Movieguide® Contributor
New York has an original idea when it comes to protecting minors on the web. Rather than taking an age-restriction approach, it plans to block social platforms’ algorithms.
“New York Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul and state lawmakers are nearing a legislative deal on the proposal, according to a person familiar with the matter,” CNN reported June 4. “The bill would push platforms such as TikTok and Meta’s Instagram to rank content in chronological order by default for young users.”
If the proposal passes, algorithm-generated content would require parental consent. Parents would also have control over notifications and night-time use.
“As currently written, that bill would restrict websites from collecting or sharing the personal data of users under 18 without consent, expanding on existing federal privacy protections for children under 13,” CNN said.
Lawmakers may vote on the proposal this week or afterward.
“New York officials have said their proposal is about regulating how platforms can display content, not blocking user access,” CNN said.
“We’re not banning young people from social media,” Hochul said on NPR Monday. “Not at all. We’re simply saying that they should not be bombarded with these feeds that can be sorted a different way and not in a way that is so negative for them.”
Florida recently banned social media use for users under the age of 13. Movieguide® reported:
The law, called “HB 3,” bans children under 13 and requires parental consent for 14 and 15-year-olds who wish to make accounts. It also requires pornography sites to use age verification methods for their users. The law will not go into effect until Jan. 1, 2025.
Antagonists of the New York bill say it goes against the First Amendment.
“Right now, we are engaged in several lawsuits across the country on basically the same law, and it is all centered around First Amendment speech,” said Carl Szabo, vice president and general counsel for NetChoice. “Essentially, what we are seeing in this legislation from the state of New York is the attempt to ban the ability of New Yorkers to access information online, speak online, as well as to require age verification or essentially ID for the Internet to even access certain capabilities.”
His use of “New Yorkers” may attempt to paint the concerned subjects of the bill as adults, but it’s clear the proposal is for children under the age of 16.
He added the legislation “is undermining and denying the editorial rights of websites to organize content the way they want to show it.”
The ACLU and other organizations have argued against similar bills, such as the Florida social media ban, all on First Amendment grounds.
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