Washington: instagramThe boss of US lawmakers faced grilling from US lawmakers on Wednesday after spoofing press reports based on leaked internal research that showed the photo-sharing app could be harming its young users.
adam mosseriThe testimony comes as the social media network under Facebook’s parent Meta, a crisis stemming from the company’s own documents, has rekindled a years-old US push for regulation.
Documents leaked by Facebook whistleblower to journalists, lawmakers and regulators Francis Haugen Including 2019 research that found Instagram makes body image issues worse for one in three teenage girls.
Another report from 2020 showed that 32% of teenage girls said that when they felt bad about their bodies, Instagram made it worse.
Facebook has pushed strongly against a string of Wall Street Journal reports based on the findings, and a subsequent series for a US media consortium, arguing that its research was misrepresented.
senators Richard Blumenthal And Marsha Blackburn is leading the hearing, the latest in a series examining how social media can make teens feel worse about themselves.
“My conversations with parents have inspired me… to fight for reforms and demanding answers,” Blumenthal said on Tuesday.
Facebook has bounced back from other scandals, such as that of Cambridge Analytica, a British consulting firm that used the personal data of millions of Facebook users to target political ads.
In that case, the chief executive officer Mark Zuckerberg Went to Washington to apologize and the company agreed to a $5 billion settlement with US regulators.
However, the major social media network faces at least one investigation prompted by the latest crisis: a consortium of US states announced in November an investigation into Meta’s techniques and potential resulting harm to lure young users.
On the eve of Wednesday’s hearing before the Senate Commerce Subcommittee, Instagram announced new protections for young users, such as suggesting a break if they’re spending a lot of time on the platform.
The timing of the announcement drew a wary reception from lawmakers, who questioned whether it was an attempt to distract before the hearing.
Stephen Balkum, founder and CEO of the advocacy group Family Online Safety Institute, said pre-hearing announcements are a Washington tradition, but added that they won’t make the app’s problems go away.
“Instagram is safer than ever. I think Instagram is less toxic to teens. But it will never be perfect, it will never be completely safe. But then it’s all social media,” he told AFP. But it’s true.”
adam mosseriThe testimony comes as the social media network under Facebook’s parent Meta, a crisis stemming from the company’s own documents, has rekindled a years-old US push for regulation.
Documents leaked by Facebook whistleblower to journalists, lawmakers and regulators Francis Haugen Including 2019 research that found Instagram makes body image issues worse for one in three teenage girls.
Another report from 2020 showed that 32% of teenage girls said that when they felt bad about their bodies, Instagram made it worse.
Facebook has pushed strongly against a string of Wall Street Journal reports based on the findings, and a subsequent series for a US media consortium, arguing that its research was misrepresented.
senators Richard Blumenthal And Marsha Blackburn is leading the hearing, the latest in a series examining how social media can make teens feel worse about themselves.
“My conversations with parents have inspired me… to fight for reforms and demanding answers,” Blumenthal said on Tuesday.
Facebook has bounced back from other scandals, such as that of Cambridge Analytica, a British consulting firm that used the personal data of millions of Facebook users to target political ads.
In that case, the chief executive officer Mark Zuckerberg Went to Washington to apologize and the company agreed to a $5 billion settlement with US regulators.
However, the major social media network faces at least one investigation prompted by the latest crisis: a consortium of US states announced in November an investigation into Meta’s techniques and potential resulting harm to lure young users.
On the eve of Wednesday’s hearing before the Senate Commerce Subcommittee, Instagram announced new protections for young users, such as suggesting a break if they’re spending a lot of time on the platform.
The timing of the announcement drew a wary reception from lawmakers, who questioned whether it was an attempt to distract before the hearing.
Stephen Balkum, founder and CEO of the advocacy group Family Online Safety Institute, said pre-hearing announcements are a Washington tradition, but added that they won’t make the app’s problems go away.
“Instagram is safer than ever. I think Instagram is less toxic to teens. But it will never be perfect, it will never be completely safe. But then it’s all social media,” he told AFP. But it’s true.”
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