Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Facebook, Instagram's Influence On Kids' Mental Health Unites Senators
CNBC: Lawmakers Give Facebook A Clear Message: Don't Build Instagram Kids
Facebook’s testimony to members of the U.S. Senate on Thursday led to one overwhelming conclusion from the lawmakers in attendance: Instagram has no business creating an app for kids. Using Facebook’s own internal research from documents leaked to the Wall Street Journal and some eventually released by the company, senators sharpened their preexisting criticism of the company and expressed their concern about its effect on young people. (Feiner, 9/30)
CBS News: Facebook Executive Says Company Doesn't Profit Off Underage Users
Facebook's global head of safety defended the company against accusations it harms children's mental health in a Senate hearing Thursday, pushing back against claims that the social media giant exploits young users for profit. The hearing before the Senate subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety and Data Security marked the first congressional testimony by a Facebook executive since a recent Wall Street Journal investigation found the company was aware its products harmed underage users. The paper cited internal Facebook research showing the company's products made body image issues worse for a third of teenage girls and prompted suicidal thoughts in 6% of all teenage users. (Bidar, 9/30)
CNBC: Senators Say Facebook Used Big Tobacco Playbook To Exploit Kids
U.S. lawmakers from opposite sides of the aisle agree on virtually nothing these days. The exception is when the topic is Facebook. Republicans and Democrats grilled Antigone Davis, Facebook’s global head of safety, on Thursday, in a hearing before the Senate Commerce subcommittee on consumer protection. Antigone, who testified by video, was called to answer questions about Instagram’s impact on the mental health of teens and Facebook’s efforts to build more products targeting children. (Rodriguez, 9/30)
NBC News: Senator's Office Posed As A Girl On Fake Instagram Account To Study App's Effect
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said his office had created a fake Instagram account to pose as a 13-year-old girl to research what the app is like for teens and how it could potentially affect their mental health. "Our research has shown, in real time, Instagram's recommendations will still latch on to a person's insecurities, a young woman's vulnerabilities about their bodies and drag them into dark places that glorify eating disorders and self-harm," Blumenthal said during a Senate hearing Thursday titled “Protecting Kids Online: Facebook, Instagram, & Mental Health Harms." "That's what Instagram does," the senator said. (Rosenblatt, 9/30)
