B&TB&TB&T
  • Advertising
  • Campaigns
  • Marketing
  • Media
  • Technology
  • Regulars
    • Agency Scorecards
    • Best of the Best
    • Campaigns of the Month
    • CMO Power List
    • CMOs to Watch
    • Culture Bites
    • Fast 10
    • New Business Winners
    • Spotlight on Sponsors
  • Jobs
  • Awards
    • 30 Under 30
    • B&T Awards
    • Cairns Crocodiles
    • Women In Media
    • Women Leading Tech
Search
Trending topics:
  • Cairns Crocodiles
  • Nine
  • Seven
  • Federal Election
  • Pinterest
  • AFL
  • WPP
  • AI
  • Anthony Albanese
  • NRL
  • EssenceMediaCom
  • Thinkerbell
  • News Corp
  • Channel 10
  • Spotlight on Sponsors
  • State of Origin
  • Cairns Hatchlings
  • TV Ratings
  • Radio Ratings
  • Sports Marketing

  • About
  • Contact
  • Editorial Guidelines
  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Advertise
© 2025 B&T. The Misfits Media Company Pty Ltd.
Reading: US Surgeon General Calls For Sweeping Social Media Changes To Protect Children
Share
B&TB&T
Subscribe
Search
  • Advertising
  • Campaigns
  • Marketing
  • Media
  • Technology
  • Regulars
    • Agency Scorecards
    • Best of the Best
    • Campaigns of the Month
    • CMO Power List
    • CMOs to Watch
    • Culture Bites
    • Fast 10
    • New Business Winners
    • Spotlight on Sponsors
  • Jobs
  • Awards
    • 30 Under 30
    • B&T Awards
    • Cairns Crocodiles
    • Women In Media
    • Women Leading Tech
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Editorial Guidelines
  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Advertise
© 2025 B&T. The Misfits Media Company Pty Ltd.
B&T > Technology > US Surgeon General Calls For Sweeping Social Media Changes To Protect Children
Technology

US Surgeon General Calls For Sweeping Social Media Changes To Protect Children

Tom Fogden
Published on: 24th May 2023 at 11:54 AM
Tom Fogden
Share
3 Min Read
Group of children of different nationalities sit in a row on the windowsill and with lack of emotion play online games or read social networks on mobile phones. Technologies that spoil childhood.
SHARE

The US’ top doctor has called for far tighter rules around social media to protect children’s physical and mental health.

While, Vice Admiral Vivek Murthy, the current surgeon general, conceded that social media could provide some benefits for young people, such as “providing positive community and connection with others who share identities, abilities, and interests” as well as creating a ground for self-expression, they were outweighed by the downsides of social media.

In a report, the surgeon general said that social media platforms’ thirst for engagement could encourage excessive use and behavioural dysregulation. Push notifications, autoplay, infinite scroll, quantifying and displaying popularity (i.e., ‘likes’), and algorithmic content recommendations were all cited mechanisms that cause harm.

These tactics have been linked to sleep and attention problems and feelings of exhaustion among teenagers. The surgeon general also said that problematic use of social media has been linked to self-reported and diagnosed ADHD.

In response, and noting that the US has a strong history of taking action to protect children in toys, transportation, and medications (though notably not firearms), the surgeon general proposed a sweeping set of changes.

First among the recommendations was the development of “age-appropriate health and safety standards. The surgeon general said it was important to design appropriate and safe technology for a child’s developmental stage, protecting children and adolescents from accessing harmful content and limiting features designed to maximise engagement.

A higher level of data privacy for children was also recommended as six-in-ten adolescents say they have little to no control over their personal information.

Tech companies, meanwhile, were instructed to conduct and facilitate transparent and independent assessments of the impact of social media products and services on children and assume responsibility for the impacts of their products on children.

They were also told to create “effective and timely” systems to manage complaints about online abuse, harmful content and interactions and other threats to children’s safety. The surgeon general added that “social media platforms should take these complaints seriously, thoroughly investigate and consider them, and respond in a timely and transparent manner.”

The large social media platforms would, of course, counter that they have a range of tools in place to protect children from harmful interactions and content. However, the surgeon general’s points around methods to display popularity and the developmental effects on children are new. Whether the social media companies take the recommendations seriously without the threat of legislation or regulation remains to be seen.

Join more than 30,000 advertising industry experts
Get all the latest advertising and media news direct to your inbox from B&T.

No related posts.

TAGGED: Social Media
Share
Tom Fogden
By Tom Fogden
Follow:
Tom is B&T's editor and covers everything that helps brands connect with customers and the agencies and brands behind the work. He'll also take any opportunity to grab a mic and get in front of the camera. Before joining B&T, Tom spent many long years in dreary London covering technology for Which? and Tech.co, the automotive industry for Auto Futures and occasionally moonlighting as a music journalist for Notion and Euphoria.

Latest News

TV Ratings (12/6/2025): 1.4 Million People Viewed The Western Bulldogs Kicking Its Way Into The Top Eight
13/06/2025
WARC Downgrades Global Ad Spend Forecast Amid “Trade Tensions” & Uncertain Tech Market
13/06/2025
Marketers Call For Measurement ‘Parity’ In Video, But One Buyer Warns ‘Be Careful What You Wish For’
13/06/2025
Meta Cracks Down On Nudify Apps & Sues Hong Kong Developer Behind CrushAI
13/06/2025
//

B&T is Australia’s leading news publication magazine for the advertising, marketing, media and PR industries.

 

B&T is owned by parent company The Misfits Media Company Pty Ltd.

About B&T

  • About
  • Contact
  • Editorial Guidelines
  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Advertise

Top Categories

  • Advertising
  • Campaigns
  • Marketing
  • Media
  • Opinion
  • Technology
  • TV Ratings

Sign Up for Our Newsletter



B&TB&T
Follow US
© 2025 B&T. The Misfits Media Company Pty Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Register Lost your password?