Bill Overview
Title: Social Media NUDGE Act
Description: This bill requires social media platforms that have more than 20 million monthly active users to implement certain content-agnostic interventions to address social media addiction and the amplification or prioritization of certain content. First, the National Science Foundation and the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine must conduct a study to identify reasonable content-agnostic interventions such as limits on account creation and content sharing. Second, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) must issue regulations requiring social media platforms to implement appropriate interventions identified by the study. The bill provides for enforcement of the requirements of this bill by the FTC.
Sponsors: Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN]
Target Audience
Population: People who use major social media platforms
Estimated Size: 240000000
- Social media platforms with more than 20 million monthly active users are major global platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, etc.
- These platforms have billions of users globally across different demographics.
- Many internet users globally use social media as part of their daily routine.
- People who frequently use social media are the ones more likely to feel any impact from changes in platform regulation.
- Social media addiction is a concern across many countries, affecting a significant number of users.
Reasoning
- Most heavy users of social media platforms are likely between the ages of 18 and 35, as these demographics have grown up with and often rely heavily on these platforms for communication and news.
- Geographical diversity matters because social media use differs by location due to cultural and infrastructure differences.
- Since the policy targets content-agnostic interventions, its impacts may vary based on individual social media usage habits rather than content consumed.
- The policy will likely have more profound effects on users who engage social media more than 2 hours a day or who report feeling addicted.
- Users not experiencing negative coverage or addiction might not feel a significant impact from the policy.
Simulated Interviews
College Student (New York, NY)
Age: 19 | Gender: female
Wellbeing Before Policy: 7
Duration of Impact: 20.0 years
Commonness: 15/20
Statement of Opinion:
- It's a good step to help people like me who find it hard to manage time on social media.
- I sometimes feel stressed seeing too much content; less information overload would be beneficial.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 2 | 9 | 7 |
| Year 3 | 9 | 7 |
| Year 5 | 9 | 8 |
| Year 10 | 8 | 8 |
| Year 20 | 7 | 7 |
Accountant (Austin, TX)
Age: 52 | Gender: male
Wellbeing Before Policy: 8
Duration of Impact: 5.0 years
Commonness: 7/20
Statement of Opinion:
- I don't think it would change much for me personally as I don't use these platforms heavily.
- These regulations might improve public discourse overall, which is good.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 8 | 8 |
| Year 2 | 8 | 8 |
| Year 3 | 8 | 8 |
| Year 5 | 8 | 8 |
| Year 10 | 8 | 8 |
| Year 20 | 8 | 8 |
Software Engineer (San Francisco, CA)
Age: 31 | Gender: female
Wellbeing Before Policy: 7
Duration of Impact: 10.0 years
Commonness: 10/20
Statement of Opinion:
- I support efforts to curb social media addiction, but am worried mandatory policies might limit useful content.
- A balance between user autonomy and regulation is important.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 7 | 7 |
| Year 2 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 3 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 5 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 10 | 7 | 6 |
| Year 20 | 7 | 6 |
Freelance Writer (Chicago, IL)
Age: 45 | Gender: other
Wellbeing Before Policy: 6
Duration of Impact: 5.0 years
Commonness: 6/20
Statement of Opinion:
- I'm concerned this might reduce the reach of my work if sharing is limited.
- Moderation might help reduce misinformation which is a positive.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 6 | 6 |
| Year 2 | 6 | 6 |
| Year 3 | 7 | 6 |
| Year 5 | 7 | 5 |
| Year 10 | 6 | 5 |
| Year 20 | 5 | 5 |
Service Worker (Detroit, MI)
Age: 22 | Gender: male
Wellbeing Before Policy: 5
Duration of Impact: 15.0 years
Commonness: 14/20
Statement of Opinion:
- The policy sounds good because it might help me reduce my social media time.
- I'm hopeful it will help improve life satisfaction.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 6 | 5 |
| Year 2 | 7 | 5 |
| Year 3 | 8 | 5 |
| Year 5 | 8 | 5 |
| Year 10 | 7 | 4 |
| Year 20 | 7 | 4 |
Marketing Manager (Los Angeles, CA)
Age: 37 | Gender: female
Wellbeing Before Policy: 7
Duration of Impact: 3.0 years
Commonness: 12/20
Statement of Opinion:
- I rely on social media for work, so changes could affect marketing strategies.
- It's important that the changes do not disrupt professional functionality.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 7 | 7 |
| Year 2 | 7 | 7 |
| Year 3 | 7 | 7 |
| Year 5 | 7 | 6 |
| Year 10 | 6 | 6 |
| Year 20 | 6 | 5 |
Tech Startup Founder (Seattle, WA)
Age: 29 | Gender: male
Wellbeing Before Policy: 8
Duration of Impact: 7.0 years
Commonness: 8/20
Statement of Opinion:
- I'm a bit worried about any restrictions affecting how I engage with clients and innovation.
- It might help personal users but could slow down tech community engagement.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 8 | 8 |
| Year 2 | 8 | 8 |
| Year 3 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 5 | 7 | 7 |
| Year 10 | 7 | 6 |
| Year 20 | 6 | 6 |
Retired (Miami, FL)
Age: 66 | Gender: female
Wellbeing Before Policy: 9
Duration of Impact: 2.0 years
Commonness: 5/20
Statement of Opinion:
- As long as I can still see family updates, I don't mind changes.
- Filtering out harmful content would be nice.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 9 | 9 |
| Year 2 | 9 | 9 |
| Year 3 | 9 | 9 |
| Year 5 | 8 | 9 |
| Year 10 | 8 | 9 |
| Year 20 | 8 | 8 |
Artist (Denver, CO)
Age: 40 | Gender: other
Wellbeing Before Policy: 6
Duration of Impact: 6.0 years
Commonness: 9/20
Statement of Opinion:
- I'm worried the policy could decrease visibility of my work.
- It might clean up news feeds, but my reach is crucial for my career.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 6 | 6 |
| Year 2 | 6 | 6 |
| Year 3 | 7 | 6 |
| Year 5 | 6 | 6 |
| Year 10 | 6 | 6 |
| Year 20 | 5 | 5 |
Student Teacher (Phoenix, AZ)
Age: 23 | Gender: female
Wellbeing Before Policy: 7
Duration of Impact: 20.0 years
Commonness: 13/20
Statement of Opinion:
- The changes might reduce distractions and make educational content easier to focus on.
- If executed well, this could be a positive move towards productive usage.
Wellbeing Over Time (With vs Without Policy)
| Year | With Policy | Without Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 2 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 3 | 9 | 7 |
| Year 5 | 9 | 7 |
| Year 10 | 8 | 7 |
| Year 20 | 8 | 7 |
Cost Estimates
Year 1: $50000000 (Low: $40000000, High: $60000000)
Year 2: $30000000 (Low: $25000000, High: $35000000)
Year 3: $30000000 (Low: $25000000, High: $35000000)
Year 5: $30000000 (Low: $25000000, High: $35000000)
Year 10: $0 (Low: $0, High: $0)
Year 100: $0 (Low: $0, High: $0)
Key Considerations
- The impact on the mental health and well-being of social media users.
- The cost of implementation for social media platforms, which may indirectly affect consumers.
- The feasibility and potential resistance to enforcement from large social media companies.
- The scalability and adaptability of the interventions across various platforms.