As the firm's chief executive is set to testify before Congress and following bombshell reports that it was aware of the app's harm to teenagers, the firm said it has increased teen safety measures in its popular photo-sharing app.
Adam Mosseri, CEO of the photo-sharing app, said in a post that the company is working on new safety features for its youngest users.
We will be nudging teens towards different topics if they've been dwelling on one topic for a long time, and we will stop people from mentioning teens that don't follow them.
Mosseri said on Nov. 10 that the Take a Break feature was being tested.
Mosseri said that a feature on the app will allow parents to monitor how much time their teenagers spend on the app and set usage time limits.
Mosseri is scheduled to testify before the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, and Data Security on December 8.
After bombshell reports about the toxic impacts of the company's platform, we want to hear straight from the company's leadership why it uses powerful algorithms that push poisonous content to children, and what it will do to make its platform safer.
The Wall Street Journal reported on an internal Facebook presentation that found that teenage girls suffer from mental health and body image issues.
One presentation slide said that the photo sharing website made body image issues worse for one in three teen girls. According to the Journal, there was a slide that said teens blame social media for increased anxiety and depression.
There was a study that looked at whether there was a link between time spent on social media and suicidal thoughts among teenagers. 13 percent of British and 6 percent of American users attribute their self-destructive tendencies to their use of the photo-sharing app, according to a presentation slide reviewed by the Journal.
Mosseri is likely to tout the new safety features on Wednesday when he speaks to lawmakers.
I see the positive impact that social media has on young people. He wrote that he was proud that the platform was a place where teens could spend time with people they care about, explore their interests, and explore who they are.
I want to make sure that it stays that way, and that I keep them safe on IG. We will continue to do research, consult with experts, and test new concepts to better serve teens.
This report was contributed to by GQ Pan.
By Tom Ozimek
Tom Ozimek has experience in journalism, deposit insurance, marketing and communications. Roy Peter Clark's best writing advice is to hit your target and leave the best for last.
