KOSA Would Boost the Federal Government’s Powers to Shape Online Speech, Says OTI

Following the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) having been reintroduced by U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), John Thune (R-S.D.), and Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), the Open Technology Institute (OTI), a New America program fostering equitable access to digital technology and its benefits, issued the following statement from Prem M. Trivedi, policy director of OTI:

OTI shares the goal of creating a safer internet for our youth, but KOSA continues to pose risks to free expression and privacy. The legislation augments the federal government’s power to limit access to information online and censor online speech. Specifically, the bill’s “duty of care” provision may incentivize platforms to over-moderate or otherwise suppress access to content that they think the FTC considers to contribute to a mental health disorder like anxiety or depression. This subjective category could cover an expansive range of content, including gun violence, LGBTQ communities, reproductive rights, racial justice, or particular political philosophies. Beyond incentivizing this kind of anticipatory self-censorship, KOSA would hand the FTC a legal tool to actively compel online platforms to shape speech, raising First Amendment and fundamental democratic concerns.

These concerns about chilling effects and enabling government-directed censorship apply to any administration. And they are not theoretical risks. On the contrary, these risks are now heightened, given this administration’s dramatic assault on the FTC’s independence, the effort to use the agency to advance an openly politicized agenda, and numerous efforts across the executive branch to expand surveillance and use federal agencies to punish disfavored speech.

We urge Members of Congress to recognize the threats posed by this proposed expansion of state power and to refocus their attention on the many meaningful steps that would better protect children online. These steps include advancing the following: comprehensive federal privacy legislation protecting Americans of all ages; improved algorithmic transparency and accountability; improved privacy, security, and safety-by-design practices; and more agency for adults and children over their individual online experiences.