Protecting California’s Youth on Social Media

Youth mental health in the United States—and particularly in California—has declined significantly over the past decade, with social media increasingly cited as a contributing factor. This policy brief, prepared for Children Now by graduate students from Stanford University’s Public Policy Program, investigates the relationship between social media use and youth mental health. Through a comprehensive literature review, expert interviews, and data analysis, the authors assess the positive and negative effects of social media, identify key mechanisms of harm, and evaluate existing regulatory responses at the state and federal levels. While social media offers benefits such as community-building and identity-affirming content, particularly for marginalized youth, it also poses risks through excessive use, harmful content, and exploitative interactions. The brief outlines six policy recommendations across two categories: expanding education and research and addressing harm mechanisms directly through regulation. These include supporting device-level age verification, mandating default youth settings, and implementing time-triggered warnings. Recognizing the legal and political challenges of regulating online platforms, the authors propose a multipronged advocacy strategy for Children Now to advance youth protections in a constitutionally sound and politically viable manner.