US EditionEU seeks to better protect children from online dangers
- The European Union launched a public consultation in 2025 to prepare recommendations for digital platforms like TikTok and Instagram to better protect children online.
- This initiative responds to rising concerns about online harms, including the spread of #SkinnyTok videos promoting extreme thinness, raised by Belgium and France.
- The EU Commission proposed draft measures such as age verification, default private accounts for minors, content recommendation adjustments, and explicit consent for adding users to reduce risks like cyberbullying.
- Henna Virkkunen, the EU’s digital chief, said the measures will help protect minors’ safety and well-being, while investigations target Meta and TikTok over failures to address youth addiction on their platforms.
- The consultations and enforcement under the Digital Services Act signal stronger regulatory focus on child safety online and suggest increased pressure on platforms to change harmful practices.
19 Articles
19 Articles
Strong reactions after SVT's review of thinness on Tiktok
Tiktok states that users under 18 years of age should not be exposed to content that violates rules regarding eating disorders and unhealthy body ideals. But SVT's review shows the opposite, which has caused Swedish politicians to react. - It is terrible that young girls are so easily affected by eating disorder material, says Minister for Gender Equality Nina Larsson (L).
Screen addiction in Europe: How do we protect minors?
The dangers of screen time for children and adolescents are becoming widely recognized and an increasing number of EU countries are imposing smartphone bans in schools. But are we doing enough in Europe to protect young people from screen addiction?
Rights group calls out TikTok for failing to protect children
Amnesty International (AI) published a statement Monday condemning TikTok’s failure to address the previously identified risks to youth’s mental health. AI reported TikTok’s responses to previous inquiries into implemented changes since a 2023 report. The responses denied the creation of user profiles from collected data and listed steps that were taken to protect youth on the app. AI noted that, in their responses, TikTok failed to address the …
EU Nations push for mandatory social media age checks amid rising concerns over child safety
As social media platforms continue to entrench themselves in the daily lives of users across Europe, several EU member states are taking a bold step to shield children from harmful online content. France, Spain, and Greece have jointly launched an initiative advocating for bloc-wide, mandatory age verification mechanisms on social media platforms such as Meta’s […]
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 50% of the sources lean Left, 50% of the sources are Center
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
Ownership
To view ownership data please Upgrade to Vantage
