Utah governor says social media increases anxiety, depression, self-harm among youth

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R) is sounding the alarm on the dangers of social media in a new interview, pointing out that it could lead to more mental health issues especially among young people.

Cox said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that youth mental health is “the issue of our time” in an interview that aired Sunday. Speaking alongside Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D), Cox warned that social media is fueling the “skyrocketing” rates of depression, anxiety and self-harm among young people.

“We have seen, again, suicide rates going up, depression, anxiety, self-harm rates skyrocketing,” he said. “And what we know also is it corresponds with social media becoming ubiquitous and cell phones becoming ubiquitous with our teenagers. Those numbers you cited from the surgeon general are deeply troubling and really sad. We have to take control of this.”

Suicides in the United States reached an all-time high last year, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released in August. U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy also issued an advisory earlier this year that social media use may be harmful to the mental health of young people.

Cox said that social media companies should be held accountable for the impact they can have on children and teenagers. He also emphasized how he has seen firsthand how social media can affect young people through his own children.

“I think it’s obvious to anyone who spends any time on social media or has kids — I have four kids. I’ve seen what’s happened to them as they’ve spent time on social media, and their friends, that this is absolutely causing these terrible increases, these hockey stick-like increases that we are seeing in anxiety, depression and self-harm amongst our youth,” he said. “By the way, it’s bad for adults too, but especially bad for our young people.”

Cox has been outspoken about the harms of social media for children in recent months after he launched a public awareness campaign that argued many children use social media and the internet too much. The state Legislature also passed a number of bills earlier this year aimed at regulating social media companies.