A senior U.S. health official has called on the country’s government to introduce warning labels on social media platforms.
U.S. Surgeon General Dr Vivek Murthy said it was “essential” that lawmakers act with “speed and urgency” to address the impact of social media on a “youth mental health crisis.”
In an essay for The New York Times, Murthy compared his proposal to warnings on tobacco products, which he said can “increase awareness and change behaviour.”
Here’s the latest.
Social media warning label proposal
Murthy said social media platforms should carry labels noting they are “associated with significant mental health harms for adolescents”, and remind parents about online safety.
He cited research showing that young people who spend more than 3 hours a day on social media “face double the risk of mental health problems.”
In a post to X this week, Murthy said that despite recommending changes to social media last year, “parents and children are still waiting for change.”
Progress
The Surgeon General’s proposal will need approval from U.S. lawmakers before it can be implemented.
Democrat Senator Richard Blumenthal said he would support the warning labels as part of broader online safeguards.
Blumenthal is calling for online protective measures that give “parents and kids real tools to disconnect” from what he called “abusive” algorithms.
Opposition
The Electronic Frontier Foundation, a nonprofit ‘digital rights’ advocacy group, described Murthy’s warning label proposal as “fear-mongering”.
It argued social media can help children overcome feelings of isolation and anxiety.
“Communications platforms are not comparable to unsafe food, unsafe cars, or cigarettes… Murthy’s effort will harm teens, not help them.”
Social media platforms
Murthy’s proposal comes after social media CEOs testified at U.S. Senate Committee hearings earlier this year.
CEOs from TikTok, Discord, X and Meta were questioned over the potential harms of their products on teenagers.
Multiple U.S. states have also recently introduced age limits to restrict young people from accessing social media.
Australia
The Australian Association of Psychologists (AAPi) responded to the U.S. Surgeon General’s proposed mental health warning labels by calling for more regulation across “all forms of social media.”
AAPi Executive Director Tegan Carrison said platforms “need to do far better when it comes to hate speech, discrimination, bullying, and AI-generated bias.”
