As more nations consider teen social media bans in order to reduce the negative impacts of online interaction and exposure, Australia’s online safety regulator released its first major report into the performance of the region’s new social media restrictions, which ban children under the age of 16 from having an account on the major apps....Read More
Harrisburg, PA — Since taking office, the Shapiro-Davis Administration has prioritized addressing security gaps and improving mental health resources for students by providing nearly $275 million in funding through the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency’s (PCCD) School Safety and Security Grant Program to Pennsylvania’s public and private K-12 schools. “The Shapiro-Davis Administration is committed to helping...Read More
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier on Wednesday announced a civil investigation into Discord, saying the state has subpoenaed the online chat platform for records tied to child safety, age-verification practices, content moderation and the reporting of exploitative activity. The subpoena, dated March 18, was issued under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act and...Read More
In Virginia, teens caught ‘sexting’ can be charged with a felony. A proposed bill could give prosecutors the option to only charge teens with a misdemeanor. (WVEC) — Sexting among high school students has become an epidemic in Virginia schools, but the consequences are even more alarming. The current penalties for sexting include felony charges...Read More
A measure that would have required parental consent for kids under 16 to use social media was deferred indefinitely Wednesday. Similar laws in other states have been held up in court. Kalaʻe Kong often looks down the hallway at St. Louis School and notices his fellow students staring down at their phone screens. “I just...Read More
Federal safety standards for water bead toys took effect this week, aimed at protecting children from a product blamed for thousands of injuries and at least one death. The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) regulations target the small, colorful polymer pellets that expand dramatically when soaked in water. Between 2017 and 2022, an estimated 6,300...Read More
PeopleImages/Getty Get your news from a source that’s not owned and controlled by oligarchs. Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily. Until now, sexting has been somewhat of a vague phenomenon, without much concrete data on how common it actually is in teen life. Experts have tried to pin down how many and how often teens...Read More
Two misconceptions have been circulating since last week’s landmark ruling in K.G.M. v. Meta et al., which found Meta and YouTube liable for harms to an individual plaintiff: First, that this verdict threatens free speech; and second, that it undermines parental rights and responsibility. Similar concerns have been raised against the nearly dozen state laws...Read More
Meta CEO. Mark Zuckerberg and Apple Inc. CEO, Tim Cook. Jon Putman | Anadolu | Al Drago | Bloomberg | Getty Images Tech’s child safety record is under a microscope. In legal proceedings spanning California, New Mexico and West Virginia this week, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Apple CEO Tim Cook are facing questions about...Read More
A new study published Monday in the journal JAMA Pediatrics shows that teenagers are sending and receiving more sexually explicit text messages than previously thought. The study, “Prevalence of Multiple Forms of Sexting Behavior Among Youth,” examined the “sexting” habits of teens and found there has been an increase in the trend since the first...Read More
