Plugged Out: Examining the Impact of Technology on America’s Youth

Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Senate Committee · January 15, 2026

0:00/2:22

2:22:38

0:00

30:00

1:00:00

1:30:00

2:00:00

2:20:00

Opening statement — committee chair

Presentation

15:43 → 21:58(6m 15s)

Chairman Cruz opened the hearing, saying "It's incredibly hard to be a kid right now," detailed rising screen time and its association with mental health harms, cited recent legislation (Take It Down Act, Kids Off Social Media Act/COSMO) and urged further action to protect children online.

Keywords:

Speakers:

Senate Commerce Committee held a hearing on online harms to children, featuring four expert witnesses who testified about links between heavy screen use, algorithmic design, AI chatbots and declines in youth mental health and learning. Lawmakers from both parties debated federal options including the Kids Off Social Media Act (COSMO), COPPA 2, E‑Rate rules, and proposals to limit algorithmic feeds for minors.

AI-Generated Content: All content on this page was generated by AI to highlight key points from the meeting. For complete details and context, we recommend watching the full video. so we can fix them.

Transcript

Unlock the transcript with a paid subscription