Young People’s Alliance is a North Carolina-based student advocacy organization consisting of college students and young adults. ¹ It solicits students to lobby elected officials in North Carolina, and during the 2022 and 2023 legislative sessions it supported policies that would restrict technology companies’ use of algorithmic targeting of content toward minors. ^{2 3}

Young People’s Alliance reports directly registering voters on college campuses and having engaged “thousands” of other voters on college campuses. Additionally, it states that it partners with member university offices and programs to support its work. ⁴

Background

Founded in 2022, Young People’s Alliance is a nonprofit organization that organizes college students in North Carolina to engage in voter registration and political advocacy. It was created after Sam Hiner, Young People’s Alliance founder, and his friend Mick Tobin began searching for ways to engage in activism opposed to Republican initiatives in the North Carolina state legislature in late 2016. ^{5 6}

As of October 2023, Young People’s Alliance has nine chapters at colleges and universities within North Carolina. In addition to registering voters and promoting civic participation, it hosts events to engage students and has hosted former chairman of the Republican National Convention and Lincoln Project co-founder Michael Steele. ⁷

Advocacy

In 2022 and 2023, Young People’s Alliance met with North Carolina state legislative offices to lobby for House Bill 644, which would restrict the use of algorithmic targeting to youths in the state. It claims credit for having “got algorithmic provisions included in the Kids Online Safety Act,” proposed federal regulatory legislation that targets social media companies. ^{8 9}

According to North Carolina-based media outlet Chapelboro.com, Sam Hiner, founder of Young People’s Alliance, “says any regular social media user may recognize how targeted advertisements or posts from popular pages end up in their timelines based on what they’ve recently watched or shared. He says the problem is how this cycle could lead to a variety of mental challenges for young people – whether its tendencies toward body negativity, extremism, or simply being unable to put their phones down.”¹⁰

Young People’s Alliance advocates for reducing repeated interactions with similar or the same content on social media feeds. As a result, it has lobbied for legislative provisions that would require social media algorithms be “less influenced by” content with which a minor user has previously engaged. ¹¹

Partners

Young People’s Alliance’s website lists New North Carolina Project, Common Cause North Carolina, Omidyar Network, and Youth Power Fund as partner organizations. ¹²

January 6 Project’s website states that it has been partnered with Young People’s Alliance since August 2022 to coordinate student outreach programs. ¹³

Funding

In 2023, it was announced the Young People’s Alliance was awarded a portion of a $2 million grant from Responsible Technology Youth Power Fund, which is funded by over 14 organizations, including the Archewell Foundation of Prince Harry of the United Kingdom and his wife, Meghan Markle. The exact grant amount was not specified, but it is reported that grants ranged between $25,000 and $200,000. ¹⁴

Leadership

Sam Hiner is the founder and executive director of Young People’s Alliance. While in high school, Hiner began meeting with elected officials in North Carolina, originally to oppose Republican initiatives. After graduating, he became a student at the University of North Carolina where he began recruiting others to join him in his advocacy efforts, which at the time were in support of ending child marriage and extending drivers license probationary periods in North Carolina, and eventually led to the formation of Young People’s Alliance. ¹⁵

1. “About Us.” Young People’s Alliance. Accessed October 16, 2023. https://youngpeoplesalliance.org/about-us.
2. “Advocacy.” Young People’s Alliance. Accessed October 16, 2023. https://youngpeoplesalliance.org/advocacy.
3. McConnell, Brighton. “College Student Group Leads NC Bill to Boost Privacy of Social Media Data.” Chapelboro.com, April 19, 2023. https://chapelboro.com/news/health/college-student-group-leads-nc-bill-to-boost-privacy-of-social-media-data.
4. “Advocacy.” Young People’s Alliance. Accessed October 16, 2023. https://youngpeoplesalliance.org/advocacy.
5. “Organizing.” Young People’s Alliance. Accessed October 16, 2023. https://youngpeoplesalliance.org/organizing.
6. “About Us.” Young People’s Alliance. Accessed October 16, 2023. https://youngpeoplesalliance.org/about-us.
7. “Organizing.” Young People’s Alliance. Accessed October 16, 2023. https://youngpeoplesalliance.org/organizing.
8. McConnell, Brighton. “College Student Group Leads NC Bill to Boost Privacy of Social Media Data.” Chapelboro.com, April 19, 2023. https://chapelboro.com/news/health/college-student-group-leads-nc-bill-to-boost-privacy-of-social-media-data.
9. “Advocacy.” Young People’s Alliance. Accessed October 16, 2023. https://youngpeoplesalliance.org/advocacy.
10. McConnell, Brighton. “College Student Group Leads NC Bill to Boost Privacy of Social Media Data.” Chapelboro.com, April 19, 2023. https://chapelboro.com/news/health/college-student-group-leads-nc-bill-to-boost-privacy-of-social-media-data.
11. McConnell, Brighton. “College Student Group Leads NC Bill to Boost Privacy of Social Media Data.” Chapelboro.com, April 19, 2023. https://chapelboro.com/news/health/college-student-group-leads-nc-bill-to-boost-privacy-of-social-media-data.
12. “Young Voices, Allied.” Young People’s Alliance. Accessed October 16, 2023. https://youngpeoplesalliance.org/.
13. “About Us: January 6th Project.” January 6th. Accessed October 16, 2023. https://www.jan6project.org/copy-of-about-us.
14. Yahne, Hannah. “Prince Harry and Meghan Award Grant to North Carolina Youth-Led Organization.” WCNC Charlotte, August 2, 2023. https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/politics/north-carolina-politics/north-carolina-youth-led-organization-awarded-grant/275-4333d317-a5f0-470f-ad61-fdb986b38793.
15. Hiner, Sam. “A Year in Political Advocacy.” Medium, November 15, 2021. https://medium.com/nc-for-better-government/a-year-in-political-advocacy-429d8102e868.