Surgeon General Calls for Safety Warning on Social Media Apps
Amid a surge in public awareness and scientific study on the effect social media apps have on the mental health of young people, Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy is calling on Congress to require platforms to carry a surgeon general’s warning label — one akin to those found on cigarettes and alcohol.
In a Monday op-ed published in The New York Times, Murthy wrote that “it is time to require a surgeon general’s warning label on social media platforms, stating that social media is associated with significant mental health harms for adolescents.”
Murthy pointed to evidence showing that “adolescents who spend more than three hours a day on social media face double the risk of anxiety and depression symptoms,” and that “nearly half of adolescents say social media makes them feel worse about their bodies.”
“To be clear, a warning label would not, on its own, make social media safe for young people,” Murthy added. The Surgeon General called on Congress to pass additional measures that would “shield young people from online harassment, abuse and exploitation and from exposure to extreme violence and sexual content,” as well as “prevent platforms from collecting sensitive data from children and should restrict the use of features like push notifications, autoplay and infinite scroll.”
Murthy also expressed his support for restrictions on access to social media before middle school, and the creation of “phone-free zones” at schools, social events, and family time.
The push to more heavily regulate the manner in which social media companies can interact with underage Americans has been in the works for some time now. In October, a coalition of 33 states sued Meta — the parent company of Facebook and Instagram — over accusations that the company had misled the public about the mental health risks for young people and teens.
In 2021, a trove of internal documents obtained by The Wall Street Journal showed that Meta — at the time still operating under the name Facebook Inc. — was aware of studies showing that Instagram use was linked to issues of anxiety, depression, body dysmorphia, and suicidal ideation — especially among teen girls.
“It doesn’t have to be this way,” Murthy wrote. “These harms are not a failure of willpower and parenting; they are the consequence of unleashing powerful technology without adequate safety measures, transparency or accountability.”
“We have the expertise, resources and tools to make social media safe for our kids. Now is the time to summon the will to act. Our children’s well-being is at stake,” he concluded.
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