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Facebook Admits Instagram App Increases Teen Anxiety and Suicidal Thoughts
But they are okay with it because the app makes them so much money. From the story: “Thirty-two percent of teen girls said that when they felt bad about their bodies, Instagram made them feel worse,” the researchers said in a March 2020 slide presentation posted to Facebook’s internal message board, reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. “Comparisons on Instagram can change how young women view and describe themselves.” Later: Among teens who reported suicidal thoughts, 13% of British users and 6% of American users traced the desire to kill themselves to Instagram, one presentation showed (WSJ). https://www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-knows-instagram-is-toxic-for-teen-girls-company-documents-show [login to see] 9 From Megan Fox: Instead of recognizing an obvious public health issue and taking steps to correct it, Facebook is focused on growing its consumer base in the teen category, which will lead to more of them being harmed by the toxic platform (Twitter).
But they are okay with it because the app makes them so much money. From the story: “Thirty-two percent of teen girls said that when they felt bad about their bodies, Instagram made them feel worse,” the researchers said in a March 2020 slide presentation posted to Facebook’s internal message board, reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. “Comparisons on Instagram can change how young women view and describe themselves.” Later: Among teens who reported suicidal thoughts, 13% of British users and 6% of American users traced the desire to kill themselves to Instagram, one presentation showed (WSJ). https://www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-knows-instagram-is-toxic-for-teen-girls-company-documents-show [login to see] 9 From Megan Fox: Instead of recognizing an obvious public health issue and taking steps to correct it, Facebook is focused on growing its consumer base in the teen category, which will lead to more of them being harmed by the toxic platform (Twitter).
Facebook
Suicide
Children
Apps
Edited >1 y ago
Posted >1 y ago
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Lt Col Charlie Brown
It's psychologically addictive. The parents have to know and step in. Social media is so much a part of teens lives now
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COL John McClellan
Lt Col Charlie Brown - Agreed. Thing is, this is not about simply "tweaking" an algorithm. The only "fix" here is to ban these kinds of platforms - because it is users that drive the content. You can have standards and "ban" the most egregious behavior I suppose, but the nature of the pressure on young girls is not from just one thing - it's the whole experience of opening yourself up to thousands or even millions of images and comments. Simply not appropriate for children, so - it has to be on the parents.
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