Florida bans children under 14 from social media in new law
Englyn Roberts was just 14 when she died by suicide after watching an Instagram video. Her tragic case is a wake up call for the US and a lesson for Australia. Warning: Disturbing content
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It is the online revolution sweeping America, so serious it’s putting the First Amendment to the test.
And the push for tighter controls this week hit Florida – the latest US state to restrict children’s social media use.
From 2025, children under 14 years old will be banned outright from using social media there, while those aged from 14 to 15 will need their parents’ consent to join a platform.
The reforms are some of the toughest in the country and follow the tragic deaths and mental health battle of teenagers connected to the platforms.
More US states are considering the same move on the back of concerted campaigns by teenagers themselves who say they have been harmed by their interactions – and parents who have lost their children to suicide.
In one prominent case, the parents of a 14-year-old girl from California who died by suicide in 2020 are suing social media behemoth Meta claiming their daughter watched a hanging video on the photo-sharing platform Instagram and copied what she saw.
Toney and Brandy Roberts said their daughter would never have known the method of suicide she used if she hadn’t watched it online.
Mr Roberts has told the media that “we will never have what we want in this lifetime: our daughter back. So we’re here advocating for change.”
Nearly a year and a half after their daughter Englyn’s death, that hanging video was still circulating on Instagram, with at least 1500 views. Mr Roberts said it was finally taken down in December 2021.
Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, has been at the centre of heightened scrutiny after investigations in the US last year revealed that it knew Instagram created significant mental health issues for its teenage users, according to its own internal documents.
In December last year more than 200 organisations petitioned the US Senate to schedule a vote on the Kids Online Safety Act which seeks to create liability, or a “duty of care,” for platforms which recommend content to minors that can negatively affect their mental health.
When Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen went public last year she revealed thousands of pages of internal documents showing the social media giant knew its platforms could be negatively impacting youth and were doing little to fix it.
There are about 21 million American adolescents on social media and, now, more than 1200 families suing social media companies including TikTok, Snapchat, YouTube, Roblox and Meta.
The Spence family from New York are also suing Meta, saying their 11-year-old daughter Alexis developed depression and an eating disorder after joining Instagram.
Despite putting parental controls on the phone they gave Alexis to keep in touch with them, they said Alexis had found a way around those controls and joined social media platforms.
Now 20 years-old, Alexis has told CBS news an innocent search on Instagram for fitness routines led her into a dark world.
Utah was the first state in the US to introduce bans on children using social media. The new laws which came into effect last year prevent under 18s from using the platforms unless parents give permission. And there is a total ban from 10.30pm each night until 6.30am.
The legislation also opens the door to lawsuits against social media companies if they are found to have harmed children.
In Texas, a bill introduced last year banning kids under 18 from joining a wide variety of social media sites without parental consent, also forces the companies to prevent children from seeing “harmful” content – relating to eating disorders, substance abuse, or “grooming” – by creating new filtering systems.
In Florida, the newest bill signed into law by Governor Ron DeSantis this week and known as HB3, goes further and rules that social media companies have to delete the existing accounts of all children under 14, and companies failing to do so could be sued on behalf of the child who creates an account.
The minor could be awarded up to $10,000 in damages, according to the bill. Companies found to be in violation of the law would also be liable for up to $50,000 for each violation plus legal costs.
But in Arkansas, laws were passed requiring media companies to verify the age of any new user who lives in the state by obtaining a “digitised identification card”. The age verification must also be done through a third-party vendor.
Despite the moves, there may still be a bumpy legal road ahead. Federal judges have temporarily blocked laws in Arkansas and Ohio from going into effect, citing concerns that they may run afoul of the First Amendment.
The preliminary injunction in Arkansas was granted to NetChoice a tech industry trade group whose members include TikTok, Facebook parent Meta, and X, formerly known as Twitter.
NetChoice is arguing the new laws are unconstitutional. The lawsuit is ongoing.
If you or someone you know needs help, contact:
Lifeline on 13 11 14
Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800
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Originally published as Florida bans children under 14 from social media in new law
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