Executives from YouTube, TikTok and Snapchat were questioned this Tuesday in the Senate as to how they protected children and the very young on their platforms, days after the scandal over the secret papers of Facebook.
Young people are vulnerable to potential harm when using social media platforms, from
eating disorders to exposure to sexually explicit content and material that promotes addictive drugs
.
Lawmakers cited these risks and sought support from executives for a project that strengthens the protection of children on social media.
But they barely received a firm commitment, The Associated Press reported.
In early 2021, after federal regulators directed TikTok to disclose how its practices affect children and teens, the platform tightened its privacy policies for those under the age of 18. DPA / Picture alliance via Getty
"The problem is clear:
Big tech is taking advantage of kids and teens to make more money,
" said Democratic Senator Edward Markey at a Senate Commerce Subcommittee hearing on consumer protection.
This week a leak revealed that Facebook amplifies violent groups and divides families.
A change to the platform in 2018 that was intended to bring users closer together had the opposite effect, according to internal researchers, and sparked a “social-civil war” online.
It was also known that the social network opposed promoting information in Spanish about the 2020 elections in the United States.
The subcommittee recently received testimony from a former Facebook data employee, who said that for the company "profits come before people."
Facebook polarized its users with its automatic recommendation system, according to a report
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Now, senators are broadening their focus to examine other tech platforms, with millions or billions of users, that are also vying for the attention and loyalty of young people.
"
We are hearing the same stories of damage
" caused by YouTube, TikTok and Snapchat, said Senator Richard Blumenthal, D-Connecticut, chairman of the panel.
[
Facebook dropped its guard on its content controls ahead of the Capitol storming on January 6
]
Participants were Michael Beckerman, vice president of TikTok and head of public policy for the Americas;
Leslie Miller, vice president of government affairs and public policy at Google, owner of YouTube;
and Jennifer Stout, vice president of global public policy at Snapchat, the parent company of Snap Inc.
Do you support a project to protect the youngest?
Markey asked the three executives if they would support his bipartisan bill that would give
new privacy rights to children and ban targeted advertisements and autoplay of videos
for minors.
There was a lengthy exchange of views in which executives avoided giving direct endorsement, insisting that their platforms already comply with the proposed restrictions.
Experts insist on the dangers of the lack of control over social networks
Oct. 6, 202101: 52
That wasn't enough for Markey and Blumenthal, who
saw a classic Washington lobby game
at a time of crisis for social media and the tech industry.
"This is the talk we've seen over and over again," Blumenthal told them.
He added that applauding legislative goals in a general way "does not make sense" unless it is backed by specific support.
The three platforms are woven into the lives of young people, the senators noted, and often influence their dress, dance moves and diet, to the point of obsession.
Social media can promote bullying, addictions, school vandalism, eating disorders, and manipulative marketing.
Defending Social Media Executives
"Sex and drugs are violations of the norms of our community; they have no place on TikTok," Beckerman said.
The company also says that it has tools, such as screen time management, for parents to control their children's exposure, and that some options, such as private messaging, are not available to minors.
[
Border agents posted cruel and insulting messages about migrants on Facebook.
His punishment was not adequate
]
How to teach children and adolescents to use social networks like Instagram?
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Senators released testimonies such as that of a 19-year-old who allegedly died from a counterfeit painkiller he purchased through Snapchat.
The executive responded that the platform has deployed detection measures against traffickers, but acknowledged that they are often bypassed.
He also recalled that there is a human control, and not by robots, of the content.
For his part, Miller said YouTube has worked to provide children and families with parental protections and controls, such as time limits, to limit viewing to age-appropriate content.
