Florida is on the verge of passing one of the nation’s most restrictive bans on minors’ use of social media after the state Senate passed a bill Thursday that would keep children under the age of 16 off popular platforms regardless of parental approval.
The measure now goes back to the state House, where the speaker has made the issue his top priority during the legislative session that ends March 8. Still, critics have pointed to similar efforts in other states that have been blocked by courts.
The bill targets any social media site that tracks user activity, allows children to upload material and interact with others, and uses addictive features designed to cause excessive or compulsive use. Supporters point to rising suicide rates among children, cyberbullying and predators using social media to prey on kids.
I can’t get over how this “limited government” party has gone from supporting parental rights and promoting family values to becoming fascists.
To be clear, there’s a ton of good to be said about preventing kids from using social media. Still, this should be up to the parents and, imo, all parents should limit or restrict it.
Isn’t this same as the cigarette and alcohol ban for minors, I hear you ask? No. Alcohol and cigarettes can be purchased from a shop. The government isn’t explicitly telling parents the kids can’t consume them, it’s banning the sale to minors. Social media and cell phones aren’t really something a 14 year old can get at a store or happen upon at a party. So, if smoking was legal and the parent restricted their 14 year old from smoking, it wouldn’t be too difficult for the kid to get a pack of their own. Social media is different. And shouldn’t involve government restrictions. Because, how the F is the government going to oversee and reprimand this?
how the F is the government going to oversee and reprimand this?
By requiring the platforms to verify the age of their users with identity checks and government ID. I’d bet the 16 cutoff age is because that’s the age when teens get either driver’s licenses or state ID cards.
Make no mistake, this has nothing to do with protecting kids. It’s entire aim is to tie online accounts to real life users.
Then they can very easily create a registry of whatever they want. Someone put pronouns in their bio that don’t match their ID? On a list. Someone signed up for a dating app with their government ID and they’re looking for same-sex partners? On a list. It doesn’t even have to stop there, though that’s definitely where it’s starting. Say on social media that you’re am atheist? On a list. Use your social media presence to criticize the government? You guessed it, on a list.
So how come pornhub doesn’t provide ID check? I doubt that’s actually gonna happen…
They can already do that just through whatever back doors they can get into social media companies if the corps don’t already just give them the data.
What this is about is shutting young folks up online because they’re the most vocal opponents of stuff like the don’t say gay bill.
Personally I’m for government issued universal ID, and I think the government should provide a secure verification API, but I don’t think this because I think there should be age restrictions, I think it because I think it’d be a viable solution to mass botting. Something like 2FA being mandatory would also help so that just stealing someone’s card doesn’t automatically give you access to all their shit.
I have a place you can shove your ID idea. Want me to show you?
Simple, it’s not really about the kids, it’s about control of the internet.
imo, all parents should limit or restrict it.
In general, perhaps—but in this case, restricting kids from social media will just increase their level of exposure to Florida.
Social media and cell phones aren’t really something a 14 year old can get at a store or happen upon at a party
Internet cafés, libraries and friends?
Still, this should be up to the parents and, imo, all parents should limit or restrict it.
Just to be clear, you’re okay with the rapidly-rising suicide rate from children of parents who already choose not do so? Even though there’s no sign of a wide improvement in parenting or social media literacy?
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What’s your policy solution or position?
Just thought I’d point out that a queer kid with religious parents has an opportunity to find other queer kids and allies via social media.
Should social media do more to ensure child safety? Sure. Is that the reason for Florida doing this? Florida caring about child welfare? What do you think?
I think it is age discrimination and about collecting more data. If they really cared children, they could ban collecting everyone’s data.
My immediate reaction was… hmm, fuck it, protect the kids, I can get onboard… And then I remembered the lonely parts of my childhood being better because of irc, BBSs, icq, aol warez groups, etc. “but it’s a different world now”… Is it though? Now we have browser history and more forensics. Old Internet was really fucked up. For God’s sake, we could get Faces of Death in the video store before we were 12, and kids had playboy on the bus. The bullying thing is worse for sure. Online was a place for the kids who got bullied to get away. Now it’s a bullhorn. Actually conflicted on this.
The old Internet was somewhat anonymous. The pervasive tracking and enragement algorithms made it so that nearly every platform is someone’s real identity. I’d argue that’s what’s a mistake for children…having them on Internet platforms attaching their real name and identity to online bullshit.
100%! That’s been my solution to date. In order: Keep kid offline Keep logged out If required, anon af username etc, never repeated across apps or games
The government shouldn’t regulate what information someone is allowed to consume. If a parent doesn’t want their kid on social media, that is their choice. The answer is simple to me, stop taking away people’s freedom of choice.
Okay. I get that argument. But it’s not a response to my comment. I’m talking about making sense of nuance and you’re responding broadly about all people. Okay… so… anyway… about my actual conundrum…
Fwiw you can make that argument about csam and snuf. Whether illegal to post, you would opt out of a world where that stuff is blocked?
I love the party of “small government” fighting to control what websites your children can visit. You know it’s the same people that spent all of 2020 and 2021 screaming about how they shouldn’t be forced to wear a mask or get a vaccine.
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Then they’ll create a state-funded youth social media platform moderated by Matt Gaetz
Don’t Estonia and Ukraine basically have that but it’s also a one stop for government services and programs? Save Matt Gaetz that actually sounds like a pretty dope way to get folks more involved with local government in the tech age tbch.
To get the joke, focus more on the implied audience and that Matt Gaetz is a pedophile.
“Florida gets closer to becoming a top market for VPNs”
Honestly VPNs are getting pretty shitty lately. Some sites have done complete bans on them.
I just don’t use those sites. They have nothing I actually need. I’ll find out somewhere else or just forget it.
Some banks are blocking them. Some government websites are too.
Exceedingly rare Florida W
They’ve gone so far to the right that they accidentally did a leftism.
300% right makes a left, or some such math
Can’t believe I’m gonna say this but…good job Florida?
This will require a driver license for every social media account. Adios anonymous political discourse.
Probably just a side effect no doubt.
And just how do they intend to enforce this?
Facebook is already requiring photo ID verification in order to unlock your account when it thinks you’re a bot. They could just do this for all users and then it’s at least a pain in the ass
And I’m sure this won’t be like those “click here if you are over 18” buttons that I definitely never clicked when I was underage. Nope. We all know kids aren’t rebellious.
And they definitely wouldn’t lie about their birth date to make an account
I think they underestimate how capable kids are of making their own damn platforms. With blackjack and hookers.
This is Gen Alpha we are talking about. They have displayed less IT/programming/computer literacy awareness than even Gen Z. There will have to be a new computer Renaissance era to pop up, otherwise they are going to have to ask their Gen Y/X family to do it.
They have displayed less IT/programming/computer literacy awareness than even Gen Z.
Have they? I see plenty of them out and about doing all the same shit Millennials and GenXers were doing 30 years ago - building computers from parts to save money, fucking around with electronics and sticking leds on everything, experimenting with python and downloading shit off torrents, and occasionally bricking a phone because they did something to the firmware.
I also see folks insisting 10 year olds should have the same experience as a college grad, which is a bit weird. But I’m hard pressed to find these bad-at-computers Gen Zs/As.
It’s just different now, sure some may have taken an interest. My optimal experience/computer fitness would have been as a high school senior, not as a college grad. In high school I was fluent in a few different older programming languages, web development of HTML/CSS from scratch, just received an A+ Certification, and could solder out components with the dexterity of someone who does it professionally.
I have retained some of that, and could research myself if needed. But I couldn’t code my way out of a cardboard box at this point. Coworkers are amazed, aghast even that I can and will use VBA in excel.
And all of that was a hobby really, I had no interest working with tech. I wanted to go into finance, or so I thought. And this would have described every other one of my peers back then as well.
I remember when the genX generation said that about me.
Sure may have been right about 90% of folks, but the 10% that were wrong… I absolutely did figure out a lot of script kiddie shit that got me in trouble and now as a “lazy millennial” doing cool shit.
Survival off the fittest. Only the kids who havnt had their entire frontal lobe scrambled my constant iPad use can get on socials.
it’s so, so sad what’s happened to Florida in the last 4 years.
it’s so, so
sadinfuriating what’s happened to Florida in the last 4 years.FTFY
They voted for it.
I dont want the government to ban things, but parents should not be giving their kids social media and smart phones at such young ages. Its overwhelmingly common, but a really bad idea.
Supporters point to rising suicide rates among children, cyberbullying and predators using social media to prey on kids.
That isn’t the reason for this.
Yeah if they actually cared about that they wouldn’t be demanding lgbtq people and helping make their suicide rates higher.
