Kids’ online safety has emerged as a rare bipartisan issue in Congress. President Biden also backed efforts to boost kids’ online safety during his State of the Union speech. As Congress mulls over how to proceed, states are taking the lead.
The hearing, titled “Protecting Our Children Online,” features children’s online safety advocates, including Kristin Bride, the parent of a son who died by suicide in 2020 after receiving anonymous messages on a feature through Snapchat.
Emma Lembke, the founder of the Log Off movement, an organization led by teens that is pushing for online kids’ safety reform, will also testify before the committee. Other witnesses include Michelle DeLaune, president and CEO of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children; John Pizzuro, CEO of Raven; Mitch Prinstein, chief science officer at the American Psychological Association; and Josh Golin, executive director of the group Fairplay.
One proposal that has received bipartisan support is the Kids Online Safety Act, led by Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.). It advanced out of the Senate Commerce Committee with unanimous bipartisan support last year but did not make it across the finish line.
We’ll be tuned in tomorrow to see how the debate plays out in the Judiciary Committee and look for signs as to what it could mean for the fate of the bill this year.
