In Florida, social media safety for minors continues to be a big deal. Parents and lawmakers are demanding more precautions as children grow up in a digital world where the number of likes, shares and followers determines their self-esteem.
As a mother of four, Leah White has seen it all regarding social media. She has seen her children navigate platforms where the desire to be accepted is more potent than anything else. But for her middle school daughter, it soon became too much to bear.
“When she switched schools, everything changed,” White said, her voice tight. “She thought she had to become someone else to fit in at school, and social media just added to her woes.”
Her daughter’s experience is part of a more significant problem, and Florida legislators are scrambling for solutions. House Bill 743, sponsored by Rep. Michelle Salzman, would give parents more control over their children’s online activities by targeting encrypted messaging and demanding more accountability from social media networks.
“The issue is that parents are not included in the conversation regarding their children’s online activities. This bill is about enabling that control to return to them,’ Rep. Salzman explained.
HB 743 goes further than HB 3, which became effective on Jan. 1, and established new social media use policies. The previous bill stipulated that kids under 14 are not allowed to have social media accounts, and 14- and 15-year-olds need parental permission to sign up.
But HB 743 goes beyond that.
If enacted, it would force social media platforms to turn off the encryption of their messaging features for users under age 16 so that their parents can monitor their conversations. The bill also requires platforms to allow parents to request to see their child’s messages and account information so that they can intervene before the situation escalates.
Additionally, the bill permits law enforcement to request messages in the course of felony criminal investigations that involve minors. This measure is in response to growing concerns about child exploitation and online predators who use encrypted messaging to hide their activities.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has expressed his support for efforts to regulate social media’s impact on minors, explaining that the bill is not a restriction on free speech but an attempt to prevent the negative aspects of social media platforms.
“This bill is not a form of regulation of speech in its current form. It recognizes the function that is causing the damage. The addictive features,’ he said.
To parents like White, the threats that come with social media are all too real. They have seen it happen right there in their own homes. The scrolling, the comparisons and the private messages from strangers make for a digital world that many families have no control over.
Children’s brains are prone to making such attachments due to the environment that has shaped their development, making them very susceptible to such attachments.
It became a vicious rut of doubt and loneliness for White’s daughter. It was as if she was holding a mirror that only showed her the worst side.
“It was like a mirror that only showed her flaws,” White said. “She couldn’t escape it; she tried as much as possible to escape it.”
Despite being under consideration in the Florida Legislature, the bill is currently in the Commerce Committee. If passed, it will become effective July 1.
To White and so many parents like her, this bill is a first step toward change. It’s not a question of stopping children from using social media, but of helping them use it safely, White said.