Experts weigh in: Will Congress address how technology affects children?

Tim Lordan, the executive director of the Congressional Internet Caucus advisory committee, asked a panel of tech policy experts on Wednesday whether Congress will address technology protections for children. 

Here's how they weighed in:

William Lehr, an MIT research associate, says he hopes Congress lets the issue "wash away," because it would facilitate "political grandstanding of a fairly unseemly sort." 

Adam Thierer, a senior research fellow at the George Mason University Mercatus Center, suggested that it may happen because policy makers have an overzealous mindset about regulating technology. "It's only time before we have to change the name of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to the 'Derail the Internet Coalition,' " he said.

Richard Bennett, a senior fellow at the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF), said he had two words on the issue: "Parental controls." 

Marvin Ammori, former Free Press adviser and University of Nebraska Law School professor, suggested close consultation with companies in Silicon Valley on what technology can do to address children's issues. He cited motion-sensing games that can tell the difference between children and adults.  

Susan Crawford suggested there are many policies the Congress can explore to address the issue.