Below is a statement from Erich Mische, CEO of SAVE-Suicide Awareness Voices of Education, on today’s historic settlement between Meta and 47 state attorneys general. Erich is available today for interviews, on camera or by phone.
“Parents did this. Grieving mothers and fathers who refused to be silent turned their pain into the most consequential child safety settlement in the history of social media. And 47 state attorneys general, Republicans and Democrats, did what Congress has failed to do: they held Meta accountable. Up to $17.1 billion in penalties is one of the largest amounts ever paid by a technology company to the states. But the money is not the story. The story is that for the first time, a social media giant has agreed, in a court filing, to a agreed, in a court filing, to a ten-year term, to independent auditing of its compliance, and to turning off the machinery of addiction.”
Under the settlement agreement, Meta will:
* Impose a default night access mode blocking teen access from midnight to 6 a.m.
* Set default daily time limits that teens cannot loosen without a supervising parent’s approval
* Disable push notifications for teens during school hours by default
* Hide like and reaction counts for teens by default and disable cosmetic procedure filters
* Notify supervising parents when their teen engages in repeated searches for terms related to suicide, self-harm, or eating disorders
“SAVE has been proud to work alongside these parents and our fellow advocacy organizations in statehouses, in Congress, and in communities across the country, and we will keep standing with them. Because a settlement is one more step, not the finish line. It binds one company. Congress must pass the Kids Online Safety Act, and states must keep passing and defending their own laws. Accountability that depends on lawsuits is accountability that came too late. Our kids need strong laws before the harm, not settlements after it.”
Media contact: Erich Mische, CEO, SAVE
About SAVE: Founded in 1989, SAVE (Suicide Awareness Voices of Education) is a national nonprofit headquartered in Bloomington, Minnesota, working to prevent suicide through education, advocacy, lethal means safety and support for suicide loss survivors.