America’s children are experiencing an unprecedented mental health crisis, driven in large part by the amount of time they spend online.
The numbers are frightening: Rates of anxiety and depression among young people have increased by 50% in recent years, and teen suicide has increased by 29% over the past decade.
Today, suicide is the second leading cause of death among children ages 10 to 14, killing more people than all cancers combined.
The current national debate over a possible ban on TikTok has focused attention on how social media and smartphones dominate our children’s lives.
Not only do 95% of teens use social media, but the Pew Research Center found that a third report using it “almost constantly.”
These platforms expose them to excessive violence, extremism, bullying and impossible beauty standards that pave the way for depression, anxiety, eating disorders and, yes, even suicidal thoughts.
Clearly, profits are more important to social media companies than the well-being of our children.
The more time someone spends scrolling, the more money these companies make, and they fight tooth and nail to keep it that way.
As a journalist, media environmentalist and, above all, as a mother, I believe it is time to launch a grassroots movement of parents ready to step up their fight against this crisis.
That’s why I founded Mothers Against Media Addiction (MAMA), a way for moms, dads, and everyone who cares about creating a world where real-life experiences are at the heart of a healthy childhood.
At MAMA, our members are urging politicians to enact policies that provide the basic online safeguards our children so desperately need.
At the federal level, this includes the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), which has an incredible 66 bipartisan cosponsors in the Senate and would require social media companies to enable the strictest safety settings by default.
Another bill, the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0), would extend online privacy protections to teens and limit Big Tech’s ability to reach minors with targeted ads.
We also need state legislators to act.
This includes implementing protections like the Age Appropriate Design Code (AADC), which prevents companies from collecting and selling children’s data.
Here in New York, the Legislature is currently considering two well-crafted bills that similarly address addictive algorithms and data privacy.
In addition to these protective measures, we need to remove cell phones from schools – now.
Classroom phones distract students from their lessons and replace essential in-person social interactions. If we want to prepare our children for success, we must ensure that schools promote face-to-face interactions and physically participatory forms of learning, like handwriting and reading books.
It is encouraging to see that several states are passing or advancing legislation to create phone-free schools. Other states are expected to follow suit.
Unfortunately, many educators and parents still do not fully recognize the serious harms of unlimited screen time. It’s time they did.
We need a national education campaign to help communicate the profound and often invisible role of media and technology in shaping the social, emotional, and academic health of our children.
That’s why MAMA is hosting a series of virtual events featuring experts who can help emerge from this crisis.
At MAMA, we model our work after Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
Through education, advocacy and the organizing power of parents, MADD has changed the way we view drunk driving and, since 1980, has significantly reduced the number of victims.
MAMA is determined to make a similar impact against an equally dangerous drug: the intoxicating, addictive and potentially deadly web of online media.
Recently, dozens of MAMA members and allies gathered outside a Meta office in New York to demand that social media companies and lawmakers prioritize the well-being of our children over technology.
At this gathering, we were moved by the story of Mary Rodee, an elementary school teacher who lost her 15-year-old son, Riley Basford, to suicide after falling victim to a Facebook sextortion scheme.
Mary’s heartbreaking loss is what fuels our work.
Addictive algorithms are powerful, and tech companies have deep pockets in addition to influential connections.
But, ultimately, nothing – and no amount of money in the world – can match the love a parent has for their child.
Together, we must ensure that our children live in a world where technology serves humanity, not the other way around.
Julie Scelfo is the founder and mom-in-chief of Mothers against media addiction (MOM).
New York Post
