New Mexico AG supports recommendation to add warning labels to social media platforms

The nation’s surgeon general has called for warning labels on social media apps, and some in New Mexico say it’s a good idea while others believe it won’t have an impact on addressing concerns over young people’s use of the platforms.

In an opinion piece in Monday’s New York Times, Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy asked Congress to take steps to require warning labels on the apps similar to those mandatory on cigarette boxes.

University of New Mexico’s Anderson School of Management principal lecturer John Benavidez told the Journal that while he thinks the warning labels would have “very little effect,” the fact that Murthy is proposing one should be an “alarm” for parents to pay closer attention to their children’s social media use.

Murthy’s request comes on the heels of his 2023 Social Media and Youth Mental Health Advisory that highlighted the connection between prolonged use of social media and increased rates of anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts and behaviors.

Social media is a contributing factor in the mental health crisis facing young people, Murthy said.

“A surgeon general’s warning label, which requires congressional action, would regularly remind parents and adolescents that social media has not been proved safe,” he wrote in the Times opinion piece.

Murthy said a warning label would not “on its own” make social media safe for young people, but would be a part of the steps needed to do so.

New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez sees the benefit.

The warning labels would do a “good deal to advance the conversation for parents, who may not appreciate that the applications are not actually safe for young people to use,” he said.

In December, the state AG’s office filed a suit against Meta Platforms Inc., the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, and the company founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

According to court documents, the complaint alleges that Meta tells the public that its social media platforms are “safe and good for children when they knowingly expose children to the dangers of sexual exploitation and mental health harm.”

Last month, 1st Judicial District Judge Bryan Biedscheid denied the motion to dismiss the suit in full, allowing the case to proceed through discovery.

Torrez said while he is not sure putting warning labels on social media applications would have a direct impact on the case, “I think it would have a direct impact on the public’s understanding on the nature of the harms we identified in the lawsuit.”

Even if Congress agrees with Murthy’s recommendation and approves a label requirement, the move would likely be challenged in the courts by tech companies, according to an Associated Press report.

“Putting a warning label on online speech isn’t just scientifically unsound, it’s at odds with the constitutional right to free speech,” Adam Kovacevich, CEO of the tech industry policy group Chamber of Progress, told the AP. “It’s surprising to see the U.S. Surgeon General attacking social media when teens themselves say it provides an important outlet for social connection.”

‘All of the above strategy’

Locally, some disagreement existed Monday on the impact a social media warning label would have.

Cigarettes carry warning labels , but people still smoke, University of New Mexico undergraduate student Charlotte Auh said.

Torrez said while some people may not follow warnings, that is “not an excuse to not provide basic information about the harms associated with a particular product.”

UNM undergraduate Eva Marques said creating the warning labels is a “nonsolution” that people can point to and say, “We’re doing something.” But the warning would not address the issues that exist, such as the lack of “third spaces” for children to interact in.

“Kids can’t go outside now,” she said. “There are not enough public parks, there are not enough activities that kids can engage in outside of social media. Social media is really easy to retreat into when you’re not feeling super awesome. It’s a big form of escapism for a lot of people.”

While some social media sites do “horrible” things for children, it is their only source of entertainment or place where they can feel connected with other people their age, Marques said.

There has been a lot of media coverage on the effects of social media on children, Benavidez said.

“Yet, we are still having these issues. I’m not sure how much a warning label will move a needle.”

What Benavidez said he could see happen are policymakers trying to hold social media companies accountable “and make sure children don’t sign up for these accounts.”

“Even if they do, these kids will find their way around it,” he said. “How do you verify their ages? That will be the thing.”

Murthy’s report included specific recommendations for policymakers, platforms and the public to make social media safer for youths.

According to reports, one recommendation includes pursuing policies that limit access — “in ways that minimize the risk of harm” — to social media for all children, such as strengthening and enforcing age minimums.

Torrez said there is no “silver bullet” to fix the problem.

“I think we have to have a multilayer approach to mitigating the harm associated with the products,” he said. “You’re going to have to pursue an all-of-the-above strategy for making kids safe.”