Mexico to regulate violent social media content, require age verification

Earlier this month, two former school students murdered a vice principal and attacked students at a Mexican secondary school in Torreón, Coahuila. Authorities say they were inspired by violent and extremist content online.

Today (Oct. 14), Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum signed a presidential decree barring social media and streaming platforms from displaying or recommending violent content to teens. The order places limits on content that "generates or promotes" hate speech, extremism, sexual exploitation, suicide, self-harm, eating disorders, cyber-bullying, and other illegal conduct, according to Mexico News Daily.

Like other social media safety bills, the decree also requires platforms verify user ages and institute parental controls. Companies have one month to get their platforms in compliance with the new law. If they fail to make changes, Sheinbaum said she will fast track a second law outlining punishment for offenders.

In September, Sheinbaum announced new nationwide education rules that included a bell-to-bell cellphone ban and restrictions on tablet use across Mexico's public education system. Similar phone bans have been implemented at the state and district-level in the United States, but federal leaders have yet to enact sweeping legislation regarding device use.

In response to concerns about the impact of social media and cyberbullying on youth mental health — as well as new research — many countries are exploring wholesale social media bans for kids and teens, as well. Australia was the first country to pass a complete ban on social media for users under the age of 16.

While many child safety advocates have encouraged government intervention as a necessary stop-gap to ongoing online abuse and harm, others have questioned the efficacy of age verification and parental controls tools.

Officials told the press that they had met with leadership from major tech companies, including Meta, TikTok, and Google, prior to Sheinbaum's announcement. None of the named companies have yet issued comment, reported Reuters.