ATLANTA — A generation of children are reaping what the technology industry sowed when it merged smartphones with social media, and the results have spurred calls for regulation.

That is what motivated state senators on Wednesday to hold the first of a series of hearings about the impact of social media and artificial intelligence on children and what to do about it.

The bipartisan committee was authorized by Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, a Republican running for governor. He backed a new law that sought to limit social media companies’ access to children, but it is tied up in court.

So children remain targets for social media platforms and application designers, said several experts and lawmakers who spoke at the hearing at the Capitol.

The committee is jointly helmed by a Democrat and a Repub

See Full Page