3.1 billion people on the planet are using some form of social media today and out of those users, 6.8% have reportedly exhibited symptoms characteristic of social media or internet addiction. Missouri’s freshman Senator, Josh Hawley recently proposed legislation to regulate these big social media tech companies - Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter - and call it the Social Media Addiction Reduction Technology Act, or the “SMART” Act, for short. It would essentially reduce screen time on these apps by limiting scrolling and autoplay features.
In this episode of Going Public, KRCU’s Cayton Hester sat down with three professors from Southeast Missouri State University’s psychology department: Stephen Nettelhorst, D’Arcy Reynolds, and Lesly Krome. They say while many social media users report ironically high levels of loneliness, this legislation may be a bit of a hard sell, considering the American peoples’ belief in freedom of speech.