Staff illustration / R. Michael Semple

WARREN — Some parents in the Mahoning Valley expressed enthusiasm over the Ohio General Assembly’s passage of new security measures for online platforms.

Effective Jan. 15, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost says the Parental Notification by Social Media Operators Act that passed in July 2023 will give these parents oversight of their children’s use of social media websites as well as online services and products aimed at children.

“I actually like it,” said Kenyetta Whipple, a Youngstown mother of two. “It’s scary nowadays because you can talk to a complete stranger with the click of a button, and I have a young daughter.”

Whipple’s son, Kenyen, 16, attends the Hubbard Exempted Village School District, while her daughter Kendyl, 7, is in the Girard City School District.

In reference to her daughter, Whipple said, “For me, there’s too much human trafficking and pedophilia going on in the world today.” She continued, “And I just feel like we’re living in a world where there is just too much free access to our kids. You can access someone’s locations, videos, and pictures, and a lot of children are naive.”

Whipple also said, “From a child’s perspective, yes, it might invade their privacy. But in my household, privacy is limited when it comes to your safety.”

Melina Amero of Hubbard said she thinks “things could go either way,” with the new law and how parents will choose to monitor their kids’ actions.

Amero, 23, said, “I think it’s hit or miss really because our generation typically had parents who were somewhat overbearing, or constantly over our shoulders, so they might not want to do that with their own kids.”

Her 3-year-old son, Luka, does not have his own devices, or accounts, and seldom watches videos on her phone.

“But when the time does come, I would like to know what he is viewing, what’s being thrown in front of his face,” Amero said.

She also said while some studies show that violent or explicit video games can influence child behaviors, “Social media is a whole different thing.”

“It can ruin people’s self confidence, and I’m sure it’s especially bad for kids. Obviously I don’t have the experience with that yet,” Amero said.

Amero said she thinks 16 years old is the appropriate threshold for the law, and before giving consent to operators, she would like to at least know what she is consenting to, through terms and agreements pages.

Patrick Barnes has a 7-year-old son and said he thinks the law largely will benefit children in terms of security to protect them from the predatory nature of some platforms. Barnes further explained it could empower parents to take a more informed approach to allowing their children access to certain content.

“Gaming platforms especially,” Barnes said, “have leaned heavily into the world of microtransactions, which are somewhat akin to gambling, which can be damaging to younger audiences and potentially develop habits.”

Barnes, of Warren, did mention, however, that the law could act as a “double-edged sword,” because some content could be overstated as “harmful.”

Kaonta Lawrence, of Austintown, said her 11-year-old daughter Jaia has used an iPad since she was about 2. Jaia, however, has not yet been given consent to use any social media.

“I don’t think social media platforms are very protective of younger children at this point,” Lawrence said. “Especially that generation that’s right there in the middle, I really don’t feel that there’s a lot of oversight or protection. I probably would be that person who needs to see the settings.”

Lawrence believes that the law and parents gaining more control should serve as a positive in protecting children.

“The children are still children; they’re not legal adults,” Lawrence added. “And I don’t think we should treat them like legal adults, in letting them activate accounts and things like that.”

Another resident with positive feelings about the issue is Tara Kalina, guidance counselor at Canfield High School. Kalina said children are very good at hiding things, so it’s good that the written communication will follow to the home.

“I think it’s a great way to facilitate conversation; now families will be able to communicate before accounts are made,” Kalina said. “Kids need that guidance, so it’s a great opportunity for families to have those discussions. Most parents would appreciate that.”

APPLIED RULES

A strong supporter of the new law, Lt. Gov. Jon Husted, said he believes social media is designed to be addictive and is harming the mental health of children. He said it’s time that parents have more say in the digital lives of their children.

“We hope that more parents will either prohibit or limit the amount of interaction they’re spending on their devices, on these apps, and put filters on it to make sure that it is limiting the age-level content,” Husted said.

On Dec. 27, 2023, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost issued a press release informing Ohio residents about the future of youth social media usage.

Beginning Jan. 15, the Parental Notification by Social Media Operators Act will take effect. The law was part of an $86.1 billion state budget bill that Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed into law in July.

“This law aims to give parents more control over their children creating new social media accounts,” Yost said in the release. “So just like any other time, if you feel like you’ve been wronged by a company, we take those complaints and work to resolve any issues — this is no different.”

The policy will apply to websites, services and products that are targeted to children, or reasonably expected to be accessed by children, the release continued.

When enacted, the law will require operators — which are considered to be any traditional social media company like Facebook, Snapchat or X (formerly Twitter), gaming platforms or shared message boards — to obtain parental consent before establishing accounts for children under the age of 16.

While Ohio isn’t the first state to enact a law similar to this, judges also have blocked laws pertaining to children’s privacy on social media platforms. Operators also will be required to present parents with a list of censoring or content moderation features.

Then, once the consent is granted, operators must send written confirmation of the account to the parent or legal guardian. When consent is not given, operators must deny access to the platform.

When operators fail to provide notification or a parent wishes to terminate a child’s access, the parent can contact the website operator, who then has 30 days to terminate the child’s access.

If parents are unsuccessful in the account being deleted, they are encouraged to file a complaint with the Ohio Attorney General’s Office at OhioProtects.org.

LAWSUIT FILED

On Friday, NetChoice — a trade group representing TikTok, Snapchat, Meta and other major tech companies — sued Yost in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, seeking to block the law from taking effect next week.

The litigation argues that Ohio’s law unconstitutionally impedes free speech and is overbroad and vague. The law also requires social media companies to provide parents with their privacy guidelines, so that families can know what content will be censored or moderated on their child’s profile.

“We at NetChoice believe families equipped with educational resources are capable of determining the best approach to online services and privacy protections for themselves,” Chris Marchese, director of the organization’s litigation center, said in a statement. “With NetChoice v. Yost, we will fight to ensure all Ohioans can embrace digital tools without their privacy, security and rights being thwarted.”

The group has won lawsuits against similar restrictions in California and Arkansas.

Husted, who leads Ohio’s technology initiatives and championed the law, called Friday’s lawsuit “cowardly but not unexpected.”

“In filing this lawsuit, these companies are determined to go around parents to expose children to harmful content and addict them to their platforms,” Husted said in a statement.

He alleged the companies know their algorithms are harming children “with catastrophic health and mental health outcomes.”

dnewman@tribtoday.com