Hochul pushes restrictions on social media and meets students

EAST AMHERST, NY — The graduating class of Williamsville East High School had a unique educational experience as the COVID-19 pandemic entered its junior year.

Senior Aniyah Ramadan was part of a group of students who spoke with Gov. Kathy Hochul on Friday to talk about the impact of social media on her life and education.

“The things that we said today, I think they kind of made her think a little bit about what to do next and how to move on, so I think she’s going to bring that back that we said today in Albany,” Ramadan said. said.

Hochul, who has hosted similar roundtables across the state, said she is learning from students as lawmakers fine-tune social media restrictions and believes she can push through this session.

“We have no choice but to act. We have seen the negative effects of social media on young people aged nine and ten, who are radically different children than they would have been if they had not been drawn to this phenomenon as an addictive force in the dark spaces of social media,” Hochul said.

The governor, alongside the attorney general and prominent Democrats, is championing legislation that would require parental consent for children under 18 to access what she calls addictive social media algorithms and another to limit the ability of companies to collect personal data about children and monetize it.

She said it’s part of the administration’s focus on children’s mental health, citing an increase in suicides and suicidal behavior corresponding to the proliferation of algorithms.

“No other state can match the way we are addressing this issue, making sure that schools like this and others have these services within them. So my view is that if we can help the students now, if they’re struggling, we can avoid a whole lifetime crisis, they’re going to need services in the future,” Hochul said.

Social media platforms oppose these bills, arguing, among other things, that algorithms are the best tool to protect children from inappropriate content. The governor has another theory about their motivation.

“It’s the best way they have to continue to attract people so they can continue to advertise to them and profit from our children,” she said.

Ramadan, who is headed to college, said she still wishes she had access to the algorithms and social media experience she knows, but sometimes it’s so overwhelming that she takes matters into her own hands .

“Recently, I had to deactivate it a few months ago because I had a lot of homework, a lot of things to do, but also, during this time without social networks, I also learned to have fun,” she declared. .

Hochul said New York would be the first in the country to tackle the problem.

She said many social media companies want to ensure the health and safety of children and there should be a national standard, but wants the state to lead the way until Congress takes action.