Press & Media

Check out the latest developments in youth advocacy and YPA's work to restore the American Dream.

Media inquiries? press@youngpeoplesalliance.org

Showing 20 of 73 results

Press Release|September 1, 2026|YPA Press Release

Young People's Alliance Celebrates Passage of AB 1709, California's Targeted Ban on Addictive Design Features

YPA celebrates the passage of AB 1709, which prohibits social media platforms from serving addictive features and feeds to users under 16, after youth advocates urged the legislature to replace the bill's original under-16 access ban with a targeted prohibition on addictive design.

Media CoverageQuoted|August 29, 2026|Rolling Stone

Rolling Stone: New Facebook and Instagram Rules Are Coming for Teens. Will They Help?

Rolling Stone breaks down the teen-safety changes Meta agreed to as part of its settlement, quoting Young People's Alliance cofounder Mick Tobin on why removing the algorithmic feed and hiding likes matters, why the two-hour limit may not, and why the settlement should be treated as a failure of Congress rather than the end of the fight.

Media CoverageQuoted|August 28, 2026|The Apopka Chief

The Apopka Chief: FLCA Symposium Updates Apopka on Data Centers, AI Policy

The Apopka Chief covers a Florida Citizens Alliance symposium on data center development and AI policy, quoting Young People's Alliance National Organizing Director Alex Dray on turning grassroots concern into bipartisan AI companion chatbot laws in Nebraska, Washington, and Hawaii.

Media CoverageMention|August 27, 2026|DC News Now

DC News Now: DMV Parents Who Lost Children to Online Harms Say Meta Settlement Is Progress, But Not Enough

DC News Now interviews Washington-area parents who lost children to online harms about Meta's $17 billion settlement, noting Young People's Alliance among the youth advocacy groups pushing for stronger protections across the tech industry.

Media CoverageQuoted|August 27, 2026|Mashable

Mashable: Meta Settlement: 5 Big Changes for Instagram, Facebook

Mick Tobin, Co-Founder and Advocacy Director of Young People's Alliance, is quoted extensively on Meta's $17 billion settlement and its new teen design changes, welcoming the shift while warning that the terms only need to remain in effect for 10 years and depend on Meta actually implementing them effectively.

Press Release|August 26, 2026|YPA Press Release

Young People's Alliance Statement on Meta Settlement Over Predatory Design Practices

YPA responds to Meta's $17 billion multistate settlement over predatory design practices that knowingly addicted and manipulated millions of young people, with a statement from Advocacy Director Mick Tobin.

Media CoverageMention|August 26, 2026|The Boston Globe

The Boston Globe: AI Data Center Protest Puts Pressure on Rep. Trahan's Federal AI Regulation Bill

The Boston Globe covers a grassroots protest outside Rep. Lori Trahan's Lowell office opposing her federal AI regulation bill, naming Young People's Alliance, whose students helped organize the demonstration, among the advocacy groups involved.

Media CoverageQuoted|August 26, 2026|Tech Policy Press

Tech Policy Press: What's in Meta's Teen Social Media Settlement, and What Hinges on Its Rivals

Mick Tobin, Co-Founder and Advocacy Director of Young People's Alliance, is quoted on how the settlement's design protections, from turning off algorithmic feeds to hiding like counts, reflect changes young people have demanded for years to combat compulsive use and social comparison.

Media CoverageQuoted|August 26, 2026|Politico

Politico: Meta's Mega-Deal Could Change the Game for Social Media

Mick Tobin, Co-Founder and Advocacy Director of Young People's Alliance, is quoted on the limits of Meta's multistate settlement, arguing that if Congress had passed KOSA years ago, safety-by-design protections would already be law instead of being won piecemeal through state litigation.

Op-Eds|August 22, 2026|Richmond Times-Dispatch

Stop testing memory, start measuring learning

Hamsini Peri, a rising senior at John Champe High School and member of her school's Young People's Alliance chapter, argues that schools must move beyond a test-driven system that fuels AI dependence, memorization and academic stress by prioritizing assessments that develop critical thinking and real-world skills.

Media CoverageMention|August 21, 2026|Lowell Sun

Lowell Sun: Protesters Bring Petition to Trahan's Office to Oppose Frontier Act Section

The Lowell Sun covers protesters, including Young People's Alliance of Massachusetts, delivering thousands of signatures to Rep. Lori Trahan's office opposing a section of her bipartisan Frontier Act that critics say would preempt state and local AI regulations; YPA students helped organize the protest.

Media CoverageQuoted|August 19, 2026|NC Newsline

NC Newsline: As Meta Faces Trial for Hooking Kids on Social Media, NC's Attorney General Offers Parents Advice

Mick Tobin, Co-Founder and Advocacy Director of Young People's Alliance, is quoted on the social ramifications of manipulating young people online as North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson's case against Meta goes to trial, and on YPA's push for legislation restricting addictive design features like infinite scroll and autoplay.

Media CoverageQuoted|August 17, 2026|Inc.

Inc.: New Jersey's Kids Code Rejects Age Checks. It Puts the Burden on Platforms Instead

YPA member Hannah Elder is quoted on how the newly signed Kids Code shows her generation that Big Tech shouldn't have a stronghold over their lives, as New Jersey takes an approach to youth online safety that avoids age-verification fights facing other internet laws.

Media CoverageQuoted|August 15, 2026|Axios

Axios: College Loses Its Monopoly on the American Dream

YPA member Rachel Sukkar, a UNC Chapel Hill student, is quoted on the pressure of competing in today's job market, describing college as feeling like "a rat race" amid growing anxiety over AI's impact on career prospects.

Press Release|August 11, 2026|Office of Governor Sherrill

NJ Governor Sherrill Signs Kids' Online Safety Package

New Jersey Governor Sherrill's office quotes YPA member Hannah Elder, a UNC Chapel Hill student, on the newly signed Kids Code showing her generation that tech companies shouldn't control their lives.

Op-Eds|August 8, 2026|The Fulcrum

The Case for Intergenerational AI Advocacy

Arvind Salem argues that AI systems trained on biased data discriminate against both young and elderly people, creating a rare opportunity for these age groups to form a powerful political coalition demanding fair representation in AI training data.

Also published in:The Mercury,Hastings Tribune,Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal

Op-Eds|July 28, 2026|The Fulcrum

Betting on Crisis: Why Prediction Markets Are a Threat to Democratic Trust

Rachel Ledoux warns that as prediction markets expand from economic forecasting into politics and global affairs, monetizing political outcomes and international crises risks eroding democratic trust and civic engagement.

Media CoverageMention|July 28, 2026|Politico

Politico: Kids Online Safety Advocates Ramp Up Pressure on the Senate

Politico's Congress live blog covers youth and child safety advocates, including YPA, pressing senators to advance the Kids Online Safety Act and other child safety bills as the Commerce Committee prepared to take up the legislation.

Press Release|June 30, 2026|YPA Press Release

Young People's Alliance Celebrates Passage of NJ Kids Code

YPA celebrates the passage of A4015/S3413, the New Jersey Kids Code Act, which balances kids' online safety with youth autonomy through design-based regulations.

Press Release|June 29, 2026|YPA Press Release

Young People's Alliance Statement on Passage of KIDS Act

YPA responds to the US House passage of the KIDS Act, applauding the inclusion of an opt-out for personalized recommendation systems while warning that the bill falls short on key protections for young people.