Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin has urged state lawmakers to implement stricter regulations that would restrict children under 18 from accessing popular social media platforms such as Instagram and TikTok.
“This is not a political issue, this is a child issue and we need to do it,” Youngkin told 8News at an event last week.
Currently, social media platforms are required by both federal and state laws to obtain parental consent before allowing individuals under the age of 13 to use their platforms.
Youngkin believes that the current laws are insufficient in safeguarding children from the mental health issues that arise from social media. As a result, he advocates for raising the age to 18 to offer better protection to young individuals.
“We are committed to restoring the childhood of Virginia’s youth,” Youngkin stated.
Earlier this year, Democrats dismissed the notion, but now Senator Lashrecse Aird (D-Petersburg), who is also a mother, acknowledges that while she is willing to consider increasing the age, setting it at 18 might seem a bit extreme.
“I can easily see the difference in the use from my 16-year-old versus the difference in the use from my 12-year-old,” Aird told 8News. “Him putting out their starting point, saying everyone 18 is fine, but I would seriously emphasize that a lot of dialogue needs to continue to happen before we finalize that age.”
Youngkin, on the other hand, emphasizes the importance of leveraging technology to verify the age of users on social media platforms.
“This is common sense stuff,” Youngkin said. “Let’s find a way to verify the age of children so people can understand they need to get parental consent to open up a new account so we are working on that and if we need legislation, we will work to get it.”
According to Aird, there is potential for bipartisan support for the proposal.
“It is dangerous that there really are loose guardrails in place right now that can easily be manipulated,” Aird said.