WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) spoke at a conference on social media and children’s mental health hosted by the Brown University School of Public Health and the Hassenfeld Child Health Innovation Institute at the National Press Club. Senator Blackburn discussed the urgent need to pass the Kids Online Safety Act, which would be the first major reform to the tech industry in a generation if signed into law. Video of her speech is available here.

Click here to watch video of Senator Blackburn’s speech.

Congress Has Not Passed a Major Law to Reform Tech Industry Since 1998

“Thank you for taking the time this week to focus on something so crucial for our nation’s future: protecting children online.

I know you’ve spent the morning looking at this issue from different angles: How social media platforms intentionally develop algorithms to keep children scrolling as long as possible; How this addiction damages the mental health of young people; and how parents face too many challenges when trying to protect their children in the virtual space.

Now, you’re probably asking yourself: What can we do about this?

To be sure, this is a complicated issue.

1998 was the last year Congress passed a major law to reform the tech industry and protect children in the virtual space. And since then, a lot has changed.

In the last 26 years, more than 100 million Americans were born during the internet’s profound transformation from dial-up to near constant connectivity.

Across the country, young people have grown up alongside this transformation, which has seen the rise of the biggest social media platforms: Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, and more.

But instead of improving their lives, we know that it has led to unthinkable harms.”

Social Media Is Killing Children Across America

“For years, my colleagues and I on the Senate Judiciary Committee and Commerce Committee have heard heartbreaking stories from parents who lost their children over social media.

We heard from Jennie DeSerio, whose 16-year-old son Mason took his own life after being inundated with hundreds of video posts on TikTok that glorified suicide.

Mason—a standout football and track athlete at his high school in Northwest Arkansas—was flooded with this content after searching the terms “inspirational quotes” and “positive affirmations.”

We also heard from the family of Grace McComas, who died by suicide after the young man who drugged and sexually assaulted her took to social media to make her feel isolated, afraid, and worthless.

When the abuse started, Grace’s parents informed the school, the police, and the state’s attorney. Yet there was nothing they could do to get Grace’s tormentor banned from digital platforms.

And we heard from Kathy Borum, a Middle Tennessee mom whose 17-year-old son, Vaughn-Thomas, passed away from fentanyl poisoning after taking a laced Xanax pill he likely acquired on Snapchat to cope with the stress of teenage life.

What Kathy told me is the heartbreaking truth for many victims of social media harms: ‘One mistake should not have been a death sentence for Vaughn-Thomas.’

No family should have to endure these tragedies.

But they happen across our country every single day because Big Tech would rather put profit over children’s safety.”

KOSA Would Ensure Social Media Platforms Are Safe by Default and Put Power Back in Parents’ Hands

“Thankfully, Congress took a big step to protect children online with the Senate’s passage in July of the bipartisan Kids Online Safety Act.

Over the last three years, Senator Blumenthal and I crafted KOSA by working with a broad coalition of stakeholders, including parents, child safety advocates, tech experts, faith leaders, pediatricians, and child psychologists.

KOSA’s purpose is simple: to ensure that social media platforms are safe for children by default.

Among its provisions, KOSA will create new tools for parents to identify harmful behavior and report abuse directly to social media sites; provide new controls for families to support their children, including to opt out of algorithmic recommendations; and require mandatory audits to ensure that platforms are mitigating harms to children.

Perhaps most importantly, KOSA will create a duty of care for online platforms to prevent specific dangers to minors, including the promotion of suicide, eating disorders, substance abuse, and sexual exploitation.

Simply put, KOSA will hold Big Tech accountable and put power back into the hands of parents and their children.

That’s why the Senate passed this crucial legislation with an overwhelming bipartisan majority: 91-3.”

Blackburn Confronts Lies About KOSA: ‘Not a Censorship Bill’

“Now, Senator Blumenthal and I are working to get KOSA across the finish line in the House and sent to the President’s desk.

Unfortunately, one of biggest obstacles we face is the false information out there about KOSA.

We’ve heard people claim that KOSA is a censorship bill.

This is false: KOSA would not censor, limit, or remove any content from the internet—no matter who it is from.

Instead, KOSA focuses on product features—like algorithms—that promote a specific list of harms: suicide, eating disorders, substance abuse, and more.

To be clear: This is the same responsibility and accountability that exists for almost every other industry in America.

We’ve also heard people claim that KOSA increases the rulemaking power of the FTC.

This is false: KOSA gives the FTC clear direction from Congress about how to apply its existing enforcement authorities to protect kids online.

We’ve even heard people argue that KOSA will require Americans to upload ID to use social media.

This is false: KOSA does not impose any age verification requirements. In fact, the bill explicitly states that it does not require age verification or the collection of additional data to determine users’ age.

It is important to dispel these lies because so much is at stake.

For the first time in a generation, we are on the cusp of delivering real change for American families—who for too long have been alone in their fight to protect their children online.

With KOSA, parents and their children will finally have a seat at the table; Big Tech will face accountability; and children will be free to be children again.”

• Rebuttal to Big Tech’s Lies about KOSA

• Blackburn, Blumenthal Statement on House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Passage of Kids Online Safety Act

• VIDEO: Blackburn, Blumenthal, Schumer, Cruz, Castor Celebrate Overwhelming Senate Passage of Kids Online Safety Act