The mayor of New York has initiated proceedings against five platforms. Eric Adams accuses them of deteriorating the mental health of young people, causing repercussions on the city’s finances.
New York City has filed a lawsuit against five of the largest digital platforms. The city’s mayor, Eric Adams, believes that the activities of Facebook, Instagram, Tiktok, Snapchat and Youtube are harming the residents of New York. Especially the youngest.
“Our city relies on innovation and technology, but many social media platforms endanger our children’s mental health, foster addiction and encourage dangerous behavior,” said New York Mayor Eric Adams during of a conference.
“A toxin in the digital environment”
Because to justify his legal attack, Eric Adams highlighted the mental health of users of these platforms. The Mayor of New York relies on the advice of the Commissioner of Health of New York, Dr. Ashwin Vasan, published last month. The report points to the increase, in the space of ten years, in the rate of New York high school students in a situation of despair (+42%) and those having suicidal thoughts (+34%).
“Social media is a toxin in our digital environment, just like lead, air pollution and nicotine in our physical environment,” explains Ashwin Vasan on X (Twitter), calling for regulation.
The complaint filed by the City of New York has three counts: negligence, gross negligence and public nuisance. This last notion is brandished in the name of the capacity of social networks “to endanger or injure the property, health, safety or comfort of a considerable number of people”, details the complaint.
100 million dollars invested each year
“We are taking bold action on behalf of millions of New Yorkers to hold these companies accountable for their role in this crisis, and we are building on our work to combat this public health danger,” added Eric Adams. He points out that the city spends $100 million each year on programs and services for the mental health of young people.
To reduce the impact of social networks on residents, recommendations are made to parents through the advice of Doctor Ashwin Vasan. The main one is to raise the age from which a child has a mobile phone, or any other object allowing access to platforms, to at least 14 years.
Currently, it is prohibited to have an account on a social network before the age of 13. A barrier easily circumvented by the youngest, in particular by modifying their date of birth when registering. For its part, France has adopted a law theoretically imposing the digital majority at 15 years, the implementing decree of which has not been published and which could be challenged by the European Union.
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2024-02-15 08:00:00
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