New York Governor Cathy Hochul signed a bill this week that requires social media platforms to display warning labels to young users before exposing them to features such as autoplay and infinite scrolling.
The state Legislature passed a bill (S4505/A5346) in June that includes language calling for mental health warnings against “addictive social media platforms,” which are defined as services with “addictive feeds, push notifications, It is defined as a platform that provides “autoplay, infinite scrolling, and/or similar counting” as an essential part of its service, with exceptions if the Attorney General determines that these features are used for “a legitimate purpose unrelated to the extended use of such platform.”
A statement from Hochul’s office said these platforms would be required to provide warnings “when young users first use predatory features and periodically thereafter.” These users cannot avoid the warning.
The announcement compares the proposed warning labels to warning labels with flashing lights on products such as tobacco, alcohol, and media. Then-Public Health Secretary Vivek Murthy said last year that social media platforms should add warning labels.
“Since taking office, my top priority has been to keep New Yorkers safe, and that includes protecting children from the potential harms of social media features that encourage excessive use,” Hochul said in a statement.
One of the bill’s sponsors, Rep. Nilly Rozi, made a similar point in her own statement, saying, “New York families deserve to be honest about how social media platforms impact their mental health. By requiring warning labels based on the latest medical research, this legislation puts public health first and ultimately gives us the tools we need to make informed decisions.”
California lawmakers have proposed similar legislation.
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New York state last year passed a law requiring social media platforms to obtain parental consent before showing “addictive feeds” to children and before collecting or selling the personal data of users under 18.
This is not the only year-end technology regulation in Hochul. She also recently signed the RAISE Act, which focuses on AI safety.
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