Government pressure on social media continues to ramp up.
The latest salvo comes from a group of state attorneys general led by Massachusetts AG Maura Healey, who have launched an investigation into TikTok and what they said is its design and promotion of social media for kids and teens that "causes or exacerbates physical and mental health harms."
They are trying to find out if the platform violated state consumer protection laws, thus putting the public at risk.
The investigation will look into what TikTok knew about potential harms of usage and the methods and techniques it may have used to boost user engagement by young people.
Also: Senators Call on FTC to Protect Kids in Metaverse
Also leading the investigation are AGs from California, Florida, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New Jersey, Tennessee and Vermont.
Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), the chair of the Senate Consumer Protection Subcommittee and big Big Tech critic who is a chief sponsor of the Kids Online Safety Act, applauded the investigation as a adjunct to efforts already underway on the Hill to hold social media accountable for their impact on kids, including potentially banning certain types of targeted online advertising.
"Along with Congressional scrutiny, this significant bipartisan probe will uncover TikTok’s actions that put profits over kids’ safety," said Blumenthal. "This investigation underscores the urgent need for our Kids Online Safety Act, so these state attorneys general can hold platforms like TikTok legally and financially accountable for the harms they find. I will be fighting for passage of this bill to impose long-overdue accountability on Big Tech and to empower kids and parents online.”
The bill creates an affirmative duty for social media platforms "to prevent and mitigate harms to minors."
In his State of the Union speech, President Biden said that social media companies are experimenting on children for profit, and called for regulations on Big Tech. ■
