Joe Maring / Digital Trends
Social media is unhealthy , at least according to the U.S. sawbones full general . Dr. Vivek H. Murthy write a guest editorial inThe New York Timesabout the risks of societal medium on young citizenry , and he called on Congress to act on a tobacco - style surgeon superior general ’s warning for social media websites .
“ It is metre to require a operating surgeon full general ’s monition label on social media platform , stating that societal media is consociate with significant mental wellness harm for adolescents , ” Dr. Murthy wrote . “ A sawbones general ’s word of advice recording label , which demand congressional military action , would regularly remind parents and adolescents that societal metier has not been turn out safe . ”
Joe Maring / Digital Trends
Before you tread back and demand what this has to do with cigarettes , that ’s a comparison Dr. Murthy himself made . The surgeon full general cited a written report of warning recording label on baccy products when bringing up the point . Dr. Murthy also pointed to several other physical health and base hit measure , such as regulations around seatbelts and airbags in cars , as well as recalls of food that has been contaminated .
“ Why is it that we have failed to answer to the hurt of societal media when they are no less urgent or far-flung than those posed by dangerous railroad car , planes or food ? These harms are not a failure of will power and parenting ; they are the moment of unleashing powerful technology without adequate safety equipment meter , transparency or answerableness , ” Dr. Murthy wrote .
Although the surgeon general is calling for a monition label on social mass medium , this is n’t Congressional natural process yet . As Dr. Murthy points out , a warning label want to be approved by Congress , even if it comes from the operating surgeon full general . Still , this is very much a call on Congress to take action .
In May 2023 , I outlined passport to make societal media safer for kids . Yet parents and kid are still waiting for modification . In my@nytimesop - erectile dysfunction , I supply a renewed call for legislators to take action and also call for a Surgeon General ’s word of advice recording label on social medium . 1/2
& mdash ; Dr. Vivek Murthy , U.S. Surgeon General ( @Surgeon_General)June 17 , 2024
This is far from the first running play - in that Meta , X ( formerly Twitter ) , TikTok , and other societal media ship’s company have had with the U.S. government . In January , administrator from major social media platformstestified before Congressabout the impact of societal media on children . And it ’s strong to forget about theTikTok banning , which is presently a pending issue in the United States .
There ’s no suppose what a surgeon full general ’s warning for social media could expect like , but it ’d likely mirror what we see on tobacco ware . We do n’t often see new warnings , after all .
