An international team of public health advocates asked Facebook to cease plans for a version of Instagram geared at children younger than 13.
The groups, headlined by the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, sent a letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Thursday, urging him to cancel plans for a platform they said would “put young users at great risk.”
“In the elementary and middle school years, children experience incredible growth in their social competencies, abstract thinking, and sense of self,” the letter read. “Finding outlets for self-expression and connection with their peers become especially important. We are concerned that a proposed Instagram for kids would exploit these rapid developmental changes.”
FACEBOOK TO GIVE ABILITY TO SNITCH ON USERS TO HAVE CONTENT TAKEN DOWN
The letter pointed to numerous studies, saying that excessive social media use heightens children’s risk of obesity, threatens to bring decreased happiness and decreased quality of sleep, and increases the risk of depression and suicidal ideation.
“Instagram, in particular, exploits young people’s fear of missing out and desire for peer approval to encourage children and teens to constantly check their devices and share photos with their followers,” the letter read. “The platform’s relentless focus on appearance, self-presentation, and branding presents challenges to adolescents’ privacy and wellbeing.”
“Younger children are even less developmentally equipped to deal with these challenges, as they are learning to navigate social interactions, friendships, and their inner sense of strengths and challenges during this crucial window of development,” it continued.
It expressed concern over what kind of content children might be led to beyond Instagram.
“Young children are highly persuadable by algorithmic prediction of what they might click on next, and we are very concerned about how automated decision making would determine what children see and experience on a kids’ Instagram platform,” it added.
The campaign’s letter was sparked by a March 18 report by BuzzFeed News detailing the plans for a version for younger children, it said.
“We will be building a new youth pillar within the Community Product Group to focus on two things: (a) accelerating our integrity and privacy work to ensure the safest possible experience for teens and (b) building a version of Instagram that allows people under the age of 13 to safely use Instagram for the first time,” Vishal Shah, Instagram’s vice president of product, reportedly said in an internal message.
The Washington Examiner reached out to Facebook about its plans but did not immediately receive a response.
“We’ve just started exploring a version of Instagram for younger teens. We agree that any experience we develop must prioritize their safety and privacy, and we will consult with experts in child development, child safety and mental health, and privacy advocates to inform it,” Facebook told Tech Crunch.
The statement continued, “In addition, we will not show ads in any Instagram experience we develop for people under the age of 13. The reality is that kids are online. They want to connect with their family and friends, have fun, and learn, and we want to help them do that in a way that is safe and age-appropriate.”
Instagram requires users to be at least 13 years of age. Those younger than 13 may have an account representing them, but users must clearly state in the account’s bio that it is managed by a parent or manager, the company said.
The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood describes itself as an organization “committed to helping children thrive in an increasingly commercialized, screen-obsessed culture, and the only organization dedicated to ending marketing to children.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Thirty-six organizations and 64 individuals whom the campaign dubbed “experts in child development and the impacts of tech on kids” signed on to the letter, including organizations from Norway, Australia, and the United Kingdom.
