The Grill Room Are the Kids… All Right?
Dec 30, 2025
Jim Steyer, the founder of Common Sense Media and a Stanford professor, dives into the pressing issues surrounding child safety in the tech landscape. He discusses the evolution of media ratings and the challenges posed by social media platforms. Steyer evaluates which tech leaders genuinely prioritize children's safety and stresses the importance of company values in shaping outcomes. He also touches on his upcoming podcast, his influential Stanford class, and shares insights on his brother Tom's gubernatorial campaign, highlighting their family's dedication to public service.
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From Harlem Classrooms To Stanford
- Jim Steyer traced his advocacy roots to teaching in Harlem and work as a civil rights lawyer before founding Common Sense Media.
- He became a Stanford professor at 28 and focused his career on low-income and disadvantaged children.
Ratings Built To Power Child Advocacy
- Common Sense Media began as a consumer ratings platform to give parents a 'Consumer Reports' for movies, TV, games, and music.
- Jim Steyer built it as a Trojan horse to create a mass child-advocacy membership to influence broader child policy.
From Content Ratings To Platform Guardrails
- Social platforms shifted the organization's focus from rating content to rating platforms and creators because user-generated content explodes.
- Common Sense now emphasizes platform guardrails and advocacy rather than reviewing every single video.