- Zuckerberg apologized to families during a question was raised about the dangers kids face on social media.
- The tech executives came under fire for allegedly ignoring their duty to lessen the negative impacts.
- To reduce potential harm, Zuckerberg highlighted Meta’s efforts to offer parents and teenagers control and help.
The CEO of Meta, Mark Zuckerberg, apologized to families during a US Senate hearing after questions were raised about the dangers kids face on social media.
The tech executives came under fire for allegedly ignoring their duty to lessen the negative impacts of social media on youth, including issues with sexual predators and teen suicides. Zuckerberg advocated that no one should experience what these families did, acknowledging the difficulties they endured.
Mark Zuckerberg
Chief executive officers from X, Snap, TikTok, and Discord also faced tough questioning from US senators during a session headlined “Big Tech and the Online Child Sexual Exploitation Crisis.”
Senator Lindsey Graham said that Zuckerberg and the businesses have a product that is harming people and that they have blood on their hands. To reduce potential harm, Zuckerberg highlighted Meta’s efforts to offer parents and teenagers control and help.
Zuckerberg noted studies suggesting social media does not have a detrimental effect on youth mental health, even though he acknowledged the difficulties.
Senator Dick Durbin contested this viewpoint, claiming that no parent in the room has raised a child who hasn’t undergone visible change as a result of an “emotional experience” on social media.
To mitigate the effects on young social media users, Meta and X have announced new initiatives. These include tightening content restrictions for teens on Facebook and Instagram and barring direct messages sent by strangers to young kids.
