Additional Coverage:
- The US lags other countries in social media restrictions for kids, but a reform push is growing (apnews.com)
On June 23, 2020, Amy Neville and Kristin Bride experienced the most devastating day of their lives-the loss of their teenage sons to harms linked to social media. Though their children lived miles apart and never met, both suffered tragic outcomes tied to online dangers. Since then, the two mothers have found strength in one another, forging a deep bond as advocates working to protect other children from similar fates.
Neville and Bride first connected while beginning their advocacy efforts and quickly realized the isolation they had felt was shared by many others. Today, they are part of a growing movement of parents and activists demanding stronger safeguards and legislative action to ensure children’s safety on social media platforms. Recent jury verdicts against major tech companies such as Meta and Google have marked significant progress in holding these corporations accountable, signaling a potential shift in how online harms are addressed.
“Now we have the court of public opinion on our side, and that is powerful,” Neville reflected. Her son Alexander, described as “brilliant and intense,” died at age 14 after purchasing a lethal drug via Snapchat. Bride’s son Carson, a caring and humorous 16-year-old, died by suicide following severe cyberbullying.
Their sons, along with 270 other young victims, were honored in Washington, D.C., on the sixth anniversary of their deaths, which families have designated as Social Media Victims Remembrance Day.
Internationally, countries including Australia, the U.K., Turkey, and Indonesia have taken steps to restrict social media access for children under 15 or 16. In the U.S., progress has been slower, but recent jury decisions in lawsuits against social media companies have exposed internal communications revealing awareness of the addictive and harmful nature of their platforms.
Legal experts note that while Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act has historically shielded tech companies from liability, new lawsuits are bypassing these protections by focusing on the companies’ intentional design choices that put children at risk. Matthew Bergman of the Social Media Victims Law Center emphasized that legal barriers remain, but they are no longer insurmountable.
Federal legislation in the U.S. is still catching up. The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) from 2000 requires parental consent for collecting data from children under 13, but broader regulations have yet to materialize. A recently introduced bipartisan bill, the Kids Internet and Digital Safety Act, incorporates parts of the Senate-passed Kids Online Safety Act but omits key provisions such as the “duty of care,” which would legally obligate companies to prevent harm to users.
Senator Marsha Blackburn criticized this omission, warning that without a duty of care, tech companies will continue prioritizing profits over children’s safety.
Bride advocates a multi-faceted approach combining legislation, litigation, and education to maintain momentum. “When one stalls, like legislation, we have trials and litigation.
We keep pressing forward. We’re not going to give up,” she stated.
Social media platforms have implemented some protective measures, such as age-appropriate account restrictions, parental controls, and content limits for teens. However, advocates argue these steps are only modest improvements. Bergman pointed out that the fundamental incentive to maximize user engagement-and, by extension, risk-remains unchanged.
Since 2024, the Senate has annually recognized June 23 as Social Media Harms Victim Remembrance Day, honoring young lives lost to online dangers like cyberbullying, suicide, and harmful challenges. Senators including Amy Klobuchar, Richard Blumenthal, and Josh Hawley have called for urgent reforms, with some pressing for the repeal of Section 230 and stronger regulatory measures.
The Senate Judiciary Committee has invited CEOs from Meta, Alphabet, TikTok, and Snap to testify on children’s safety, framing the discussion as potentially social media’s “Big Tobacco moment,” where industry practices come under intense scrutiny.
For Neville and Bride, these developments fuel cautious optimism. “Every morning I wake up knowing lives are on the line,” Neville shared.
“If we’re not talking about these issues, if we’re not acting, lives are at risk. That’s the reality I’ll live with-and fight on-every day.”