US lags other countries in social media restrictions, a reform push is growing
The United States has fewer restrictions on social media compared to other countries, but a growing movement of families, lawmakers, and advocates is pushing for reforms to address harms to children, including measures like the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) and age verification laws.
Background
- The US currently has no comprehensive federal law regulating social media for minors, unlike Europe (EU Digital Services Act), the UK (Online Safety Act), and Australia (which passed a sweeping under-16 ban in 2024). The article discusses a growing push in US states and Congress to catch up.
- The Supreme Court's 2024 decision in *Moody v. NetChoice* and *Paxton v. NetChoice* blocked Florida and Texas laws that would have restricted platforms' content moderation, signaling that new laws must survive First Amendment scrutiny — a hurdle not present in most other countries.
- "KOSA" (Kids Online Safety Act) is the leading federal bill; it would impose a "duty of care" on platforms to prevent harm to minors. It passed the Senate but has stalled in the House. Critics say it could lead to censorship and let states sue platforms over protected speech.
- A key tension: US free-speech protections (First Amendment) make it harder to pass the kind of age-verification, content-blocking, or algorithmic-restriction laws common in Europe and Australia. Any US law must be narrowly tailored or it will be struck down.