A bipartisan majority of Americans favor stronger government regulation of social media companies, including requirements for age-verification tools to restrict younger children’s access, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll.
The survey, conducted over the six days ending August 3, comes amid growing legal challenges for companies such as Meta Platforms and Google’s YouTube over their handling of young users. A trial is set to begin Wednesday on claims by state prosecutors that Meta deliberately designed its products to addict minors.
Meta denies the allegations and has warned it could face penalties of up to $1.4 trillion if the states succeed. Separately, a New Mexico state court ordered Meta on Thursday to pay $567 million into a teen mental health fund and alter how its platforms operate for young users, after ruling that the company was responsible for harming children’s wellbeing.
Lawmakers across the United States are also intensifying scrutiny of tech platforms’ effects on youth. More than a dozen states have enacted laws restricting minors’ access to social media, citing the need to improve online safety. NetChoice, a trade group supported by Meta, TikTok, Snap and other major platforms, has filed lawsuits to block age-verification mandates, arguing that they infringe on free-speech rights.
James Bosserdet, a 60-year-old mechanical engineer from Tennessee who voted for Republican President Donald Trump in the 2024 election, said he mostly wants the U.S. government to have a smaller role in Americans' lives, but that cracking down on social media companies is an exception.
"Somebody's got to do it," he said, referring to setting restrictions on social media for kids. "Is it the government's job? I don't want it to be. I think maybe it should be."