ICYMI: U.S. Senator Katie Britt Joins America’s Newsroom on Fox News
‘D.C. … need(s) to take a step back from the grip that Big Tech has on them, and think about their children and the next generation’
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Katie Britt (R-Ala.) today joined America’s Newsroom on Fox News. The Senator discussed holding Big Tech accountable for putting profits over protecting our children online and responded to Australia’s new social media ban for children and teens 16 and under.
On Big Tech and social media companies putting profits over protecting children and teens online:
“Look, what we have seen, Bill, is that tech companies care about one thing and that’s their bottom line. Time and time again, we have exposed what they are doing to children, what these algorithms do … How many parents do we have to have come in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee and others telling us the heartbreaking story of losing their children before we act? I think the time for action, Bill, is now, and I commend Australia for actually doing something and protecting their most their most valuable and precious asset and that’s the next generation.”
On Congress taking action to protect our most vulnerable from the dangers of social media:
“It needs to. And I think when you look at what’s happening right now with our kids, ages 13 to 17, they have said they actually feel more negative, feel more depressed—almost 50% of them admit to that after being on social media … [T]he previous Surgeon General said kids shouldn’t be on social media until they’re 16. Now is the time to act. But the truth is, is Big Tech has a grip on Congress, and Congress’s inaction is feckless. I do not have to ask people what it is like to raise kids right now, I am living it. And we know the harms, and it is our job to put up the proper guardrails so that these kids can flourish. So, I think the time for action is now, and I think that Australia taking this step, Bill, I hope leads the US to actually do something.”
On parenting in an increasingly dangerous digital age:
“Look, parents are doing the best they can … We did not grow up in a society with front facing cameras. Bill, the game has changed. You think about everything from children buying things on Snapchat that are laced with fentanyl, to bullying that leads to depression and sometimes suicidal thoughts and actually actions. You look at AI chatbots that we have now exposed are having sensual relationships with eight-year-olds, and Meta knows that that is taking place. To now sextortion, so children are obviously sharing a photo of themselves … and these kinds of things have then turned into blackmail and ultimately way too many children taking their lives …
“[W]e [used to] come home and we’d lock our doors at night, Bill, and we then felt like our children were safe. What has happened now is people who want to do our children harm are literally in the palm of their hand …
“But at the end of the day, that does not negate the fact that D.C. needs to do something. They need to take a step back from the grip that Big Tech has on them, and think about their children and the next generation, Bill. That’s what’s at stake here.”
You can watch the full segment here.
Senator Britt has led the charge on protecting children from the increasing dangers of social media, including introducing the Kids Off Social Media Act and the Stop the Scroll Act. Just yesterday, Senator Britt participated in a Senate Judiciary Committee hearingwith subject matter experts and the parents of victims of sextortion, committing to continuing her fight against online threats to children and holding Big Tech and social media companies accountable.
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