LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Southern Nevada has seen a stark increase in teen violence in recent years and now state lawmakers will consider a bill about the use of social media by teenagers.
Last year, Channel 13 reported on the uptick of teen murder arrests in Las Vegas. Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson told us at the time social media is playing a role.
"Whether it's bullying, harassment, whether it's violent crime, whether it's the actual perpetrator who's filming himself or observers. Yes, we're seeing an increase in cases involving social media," Wolfson said.
On behalf of the Nevada Attorney General's Office, Senate Bill 63 was filed last month.
The bill wants to establish an age verification system for social media users and require minors under 13 years of age to get consent from a parent or legal guardian before opening a social media account.
Parent Meghan Stuhmer knows the dangers of social media firsthand.
"It has destroyed and ruined the innocence of these adolescents," Stuhmer said.
Back in 2021, Stuhmer and her daughter lived in South Carolina when a social media trend challenging youth to reach speeds in cars over 100 miles per hour piqued her daughter's interest.
"She chose to take my car out and to get it to 130 miles per hour," Stuhmer said. "She hit a tree and her friend in the back seat passed away instantly."
Her daughter survived, and Stuhmer was determined to find out what caused her daughter to get behind the wheel that night. She said her daughter took defensive driving lessons for a year.
Stuhmer said although speeding culture was popular in the area she was living in, it wasn't something of interest to her family.
"My daughter never mentioned a fast car, never mentioned a car she liked, never tried to speed," Stuhmer said.
While digging through her daughter's phone, Stuhmer found social media platforms were targeting certain demographics and one advertisement about a car gave her chills.
"It was sexy, on like a mountain highway, dark, curvy road, it drives 200 miles an hour," Stuhmer said. "I was looking at a teenage girl's phone. I wasn't looking at an adult's phone, because we don't receive these things."
Channel 13 also spoke to Dr. Sid Khurana, a father of two and a child psychiatrist. He explained the correlation between social media and teen mental health.
"Ever since COVID, the use of screen, as well as social media, has exponentially increased," Dr. Khurana said. "We do know that linked with that, there are higher rates of social isolation, higher rates of anxiety, higher rates of depression, higher rates of children as well as adolescents bullying behaviors."
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Concerns of Personal Identifying Information
While the goal of SB 63 is to keep teenagers safe from the dangers of social media, some argue an age verification system could allow social media companies to have more access to personal identifying information.
"We are acutely aware of those issues as well," said Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford. "This is not an end-all, be-all, nor a silver bullet to those issues. We have running parallel programs to continue to educate individuals about protecting the privacy information, but also to hold accountable those companies that violate the privacy rules associated with this type of information that may be available to them."
Ford said his office has had preliminary conversations with some of the biggest tech companies.
"We are engaging in communication about going forward, how we can continue to improve the process to protect the interests of youth," Ford said.
Currently, Ford's office is suing tech companies TikTok, Snapchat and Meta, claiming the platforms create content that is harmful to teenagers.
"We are doing our best to number one, protect youth, but also allow technology to continue to flourish and develop," Ford said.
Perspective from teachers
Stuhmer is also a special education teacher who said she's seen the impact of social media on her students.
"Like these kids, they're being graded constantly," Stuhmer said. "They're constantly being fed these algorithms and these harmful challenges."
Channel 13 also spoke to Reuben D'Silva, a state assemblyman and Rancho High School teacher.
"Students are constantly distracted," D'Silva said. "They have like this impulse every time they hear a notification go off."
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D'Silva said he's seen situations in which students have actually cried because a device was taken away from them.
Both Stuhmer and D'Silva said social media provides an extra avenue for bullying.
"I've been involved with students who have been sending death threats to one another, who've encouraged students to commit suicide," D'Silva said.
Kids Online Safety Act
While a state bill will make its way to Nevada State Legislature next year, a federal legislation on youth online safety has been a topic of conversation in Congress for several years now.
It's called the Kids Online Safety Act, first introduced in 2022. The bill already passed the Senate earlier this year.
KOSA would create a "duty of care" clause which would require social media companies to take reasonable steps to prevent harm.
Stuhmer said she's been a strong proponent of KOSA.
"We need to protect from the predators and the predators, it's big tech," Stuhmer said.
The bill in Nevada does not have a hearing set yet. Nevada's legislative session begins in February.
