PORTLAND, Maine — A bipartisan group of 42 attorneys general, including Maine's Aaron Frey, are calling on Congress to put a surgeon general warning on all algorithm-driven social media platforms.
In a letter to Congress this week, the National Association of Attorneys General said there is growing evidence linking the use of social media by young people to psychological problems like depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts, a news release from the association said.
They also cited the processes used by social media to keep people, particularly kids, hooked on relentless scrolling and engagement at the expense of all else, including sleep.
The letter states that legislative intervention is needed because “social media platforms have demonstrated an unwillingness to fix the problem on their own.”
The attorneys general from California, Colorado, Kentucky, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, and Tennessee co-sponsored the letter to Congress.
State and territory attorneys general from Alabama, American Samoa, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming joined them.
The National Association of Attorneys General is the nonpartisan national forum for the United States' state and territory attorneys general and their staff.
You can learn more about the letter to Congress here.