How a Georgia Lawmaker is Tackling Kids' Online Safety

Sen. Sally Harrell was elected to the Georgia State Senate in 2018, representing DeKalb and Gwinnett counties. Prior to serving in the Senate, Sen. Harrell earned a Master of Social Work and worked as a non-profit executive. Recently, Sen. Harrell co-chaired a legislative study committee on Kids' Online Safety. She and her husband are proud parents of two young adult children. In this episode… Keeping kids safe online has moved beyond screen time limits and reminders about what not to click. From social media and gaming platforms to AI companion chatbots, lawmakers are focusing on features that can manipulate children or expose them to harmful interactions. Parents want stronger protections for their children, and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle agree more must be done. As lawmakers push to regulate harmful design and AI-driven risks, balancing child safety with innovation remains a challenge.  Protecting kids online takes more than one policy or parental control setting. Georgia State Senator Sally Harrell knows this well. She introduced a resolution to create a bipartisan-led Senate Study Committee dedicated to keeping kids safe online. The committee's work helped advance the bell-to-bell cellphone ban for high school students, building on the K through eight ban previously signed into law in Georgia. Their efforts also led to bills addressing addictive social media and gaming design and AI companion chatbot safeguards. The legislative process revealed how lobbying pressure and buried bill language can weaken broadly supported protections. Yet call to action matters. Parents and constituents need to stay engaged, get involved, and speak up to ensure legislators are held accountable for protecting children online.  In this episode of She Said Privacy/He Said Security, Jodi and Justin Daniels speak with Georgia State Senator Sally Harrell about the realities of advancing kids' online safety legislation. Senator Harrell explains how the bipartisan-led Georgia Senate Study Committee on kids' online safety turned parent concerns into legislative action. She shares a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to keep bills moving, including the constraints of short legislative sessions, Big Tech lobbying, and the role public advocacy plays. Senator Harrell also provides privacy and security tips for families navigating children's online activity.