Common Sense Media Responds to Claims from Social Media CEOs in Senate Judiciary Hearing
WASHINGTON – January 31, 2024 – Today, the CEOs of Snap, Discord, TikTok, Meta, and X testified before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee about their role in the Online Child Sexual Exploitation Crisis and other online harms to kids and teens. James P. Steyer, founder and CEO of Common Sense Media, issued the following statement.
"The pressure that the Judiciary Committee is putting on tech CEOs today is absolutely justified and frankly long overdue. Mark Zuckerberg's apology to the affected families in the courtroom is the latest performance in a 10-year circus to avoid responsibility for disgraceful neglect and disregard for our children, families, and society at large.
"For these CEOs to claim that there is no causal relationship between social media and the decline in youth mental health is like trying to sweep a boulder under a rug. This carefully phrased propaganda-like comment asks the American public to completely ignore the research, polls, whistleblowers, court documents, and basic common sense, as well as the first-hand testimony of tens of thousands of parents who have directly traced their kids' depression, body image issues, drug use, eating disorders, and even suicide to their social media use.
"Now that the hearing is over, Congress must accept responsibility for the fact that they have also kicked the can down the road for more than a decade. It is time for the Senate to bring kids online safety bills up for a vote once and for all and to immediately begin to reduce online harms to kids. That's what the families who are standing in the hearing today and courtrooms across the country really want: Congress must take action and pass laws that protect children online. As Chairman Durbin said, 'no more excuses.' Parents say: time to stand and deliver."
About Common Sense
Common Sense is the nation's leading nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of kids and families by providing the trustworthy information, education, and independent voice they need to thrive in the 21st century. Learn more at commonsense.org.