This story is about suicide. If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders She announced Friday that she would address her state's share of the national youth mental health crisis by planning to give parents the power to sue big tech companies and “hold bad actors accountable.”
Sanders will also address the issue at the World Economic Forum next week in Davos, Switzerland. You will join “The Anxious Generation” author Jonathan Haidt discusses the role smartphones and social media are harming America's youth.
Sarah Huckabee Sanders (AFP Getty)
In Davos, Sanders will also join Kentucky Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear in a bipartisan session to discuss the nation's priorities and the role of state governments in the presidential transition — as President Biden surrenders to President-elect Trump.
As for the issue of Big Tech, Sanders told Fox News Digital that protecting children is critical to her administration.
“In the past decade, across America, anxiety, depression, and suicide among teens have skyrocketed, and the reason is clear: unfettered access to phones and social media,” she said.
“Under my leadership, Arkansas will act To empower parents and protect children.”
Flashback: Sanders gives a response to Soto
“I look forward to…Davos to talk about this critical issue and how my administration is stepping up to hold Big Tech accountable.”
When it comes to addressing Big Tech's alleged role in exacerbating the youth mental health crisis nationwide, Sanders noted that she previously launched a pilot program for phone-free schools in 2024. The program provides government funding to schools for phone bags to prevent their use during school. day.
Sanders, whose father, Mike Huckabee, previously served as Arkansas governor, said she plans to update the state's social media safety law as well.
Regarding holding Big Tech accountable for the mental health crisis, Sanders said “Modern threats… require modern solutions.”
“Nothing is more honest than our children,” she said in her State of the State address.
“In the past decade, across America, teen suicide rates have tripled, rates of self-harm among girls have risen by nearly 200%, and depression among teens has increased by 150%. The reason is clear: unfettered access to phones and social media.” .
She called a mother from Centerton, Arkansas, whose 16-year-old son committed suicide after going from an active, sports-loving teen to one who spent more and more time watching social media videos on his phone.
Social media apps appear on your iPhone screen. (Getty)
The boy's mother tried to take his phone away, but he eventually returned to his room, where he had already committed suicide within 13 minutes.
“Months later, grieving, (the boy's mother) decided to check his phone. She used his TikTok app, and what she saw shocked her: video after video giving step-by-step instructions,” Sanders said. About how to commit suicide.
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“We will give moms like her the right to sue big tech companies under state law, so they can hold bad actors accountable.”
Recently New Yorker interviewHaidt – the author who appeared with Sanders in Davos – expressed shock at the difference between the “You sit too close to the TV, and your eyes will burn” generation and a new generation being warned about the dangers of social media.
“The technology environment in the '90s was a miracle. We loved it. Millennials grew up on it. Their mental health was good. Then in 2012 and 2013: Boom. The charts are going up. Mental health is falling off a cliff. It's surprising,” Haidt said. Incredibly.”
