My name is Joann Bogard and I am a mom to three beautiful children. Two are now adults and one will forever be 15. Our youngest son, Mason, didn’t spend a lot of time on social media. He would rather be outdoors hiking, fishing or at his workbench creating something. He did, however, watch a lot of how-to videos on YouTube, such as creating fishing lures and woodworking.
Three years ago, Mason passed away after trying an online challenge, specifically, the Choking Game, also known by several other names including the Pass Out Challenge. The choking game encourages viewers to choke themselves in an attempt to lose consciousness. Mason’s death was ruled accidental. I know my son — he didn’t want to die or even harm himself. He simply got caught up in the “likes” and peer pressure that define today’s online world.
Many parents hear our family’s story and, although they feel for us, they think “not my child.” I beg you to not assume that your child knows better. Every child is susceptible to impulsive behaviors and peer pressure. My son was an intelligent, curious, normal 15-year-old boy who went to a good school and had great friends. I am an engaged parent who regularly communicated with him about potential dangers on the internet — but none of this matters when your child has access to inappropriate content on social media platforms that make huge profits from continually pushing extreme and even unsafe content to our kids.
I have personally spoken to many social media CEOs and told them Mason’s story. But it is apparent that they are not interested in applying the safety features necessary to save the lives of other children. As long as Big Tech relies on pushing extreme content and lures young users with design features that take advantage of our children’s vulnerabilities, families across the country will continue to experience tragedy. So, we must turn to legislation to mandate safety features that will protect our children from harm online.
Young people view videos such as the Choking Game as safe and funny because no one is harmed in the videos they view. That is because the children who die never get to post their videos. For my son, the belt that Mason used locked in place and didn’t loosen after he passed out. He never woke up. Mason was on life support for a week. We buried our sweet son’s young body at 15 years old. He had a whole life ahead of him, but he will never know that life.
I know this: No parent should have to outlive their child. And unfortunately, every child is susceptible to online harms because of the current lack of protections placed on platforms that are ingrained in our lives. Please contact Sen. Todd Young and Sen. Mike Braun by calling their offices at 202-224-3121 and urge them to support the Kids Online Safety Act (s.3663). In memory of Mason, please hug your children today. #MasonsMessage
Joann Bogard lives in Evansville.