President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. Photo via Biden’s Facebook.
The Biden-Harris administration announced a slate of new actions on May 23 that are designed to better protect youth on social media and online platforms by applying a whole-of-government approach to address issues concerning mental health, safety and privacy.
The White House noted that “undeniable” evidence links these technologies to the country’s “unprecedented youth mental health crisis,” with rates of depression and anxiety rising sharply among young people, including LGBTQ+ students, 69 percent of whom report having persistent feelings of sadness.
New actions previewed by the administration’s fact sheet include the creation of an interagency Task Force on Kids Online Health and Safety, which will be administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration in coordination with the U.S. Department of Commerce.
The task force will develop a blueprint for new research on the harms and health benefits to minors caused by online platforms, “recommend measures and methods for assessing, preventing, and mitigating” the harms, and “recommend best practices and technical standards for transparency reports and audits related to online harms to the privacy, health, and safety of children and teenagers.”
Work product from the task force will include resources for parents and legal guardians to better protect their children’s mental health, safety and privacy online, as well as “voluntary guidance, policy recommendations and a toolkit on safety, health and privacy-by-design” for industry, with the latter expected by Spring 2024.
Other initiatives highlighted in the administration’s fact sheet include rulemaking by the U.S. Department of Education to protect the privacy of minor students’ data and address concerns with its monetization. The agency will also be tasked with drafting “model policies and voluntary best practices for school districts on the use of internet-enabled devices.”
Additionally, the White House announced, the Commerce Department will work to curb the online harassment and abuse of minors by “promoting awareness of services and support for youth victims,” while the U.S. Department of Homeland Security will coordinate efforts with the U.S. Department of Justice on new approaches to “detect and investigate offenses involving child sexual abuse material.”
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