‘Our kids are not cash cows’: Senator accuses Instagram ‘technological wizards’ of not protecting teens

Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri appeared at a Senate hearing amid allegations that the company is not focused enough on protections for its users

Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar testified before the Senate on Wednesday, about the effect of Instagram on children, amid allegations that the company is more concerned about profits than user safety.

“Our kids are not cash cows,” said Ms Klobuchar to Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri. “Because when you look at the marketing budget and you look at what your company has done, it’s to try to get more and more of them.”

Mr Mosseri appeared with Ms Klobuchar at the hearing, titled Protecting Kids Online: Instagram and Reforms for Young Users, in front of the Senate Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, following allegations by Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen, who shared data suggested that the social media platform was causing mental health issues for teenagers.

“When I look at your company’s quotes from one document [Instagram] viewed losing teen users as an ‘existential threat.’ Whereas parents are viewing their kids’ addictions to your product and other products as an existential threat to their families,” said Ms Klobuchar.

Ms Klobuchar explained how she had talked to numerous parents who said they have done everything they can to get their kids off Instagram, which is owned by Facebook: “Kids who are addicted at age 10, and they are scared for their kids,” she said.

She also claimed that Instagram increased its marketing budget to target children users to “woo more teens”, said the senator.

Mr Mosseri responded: “We have people of all ages, including teens, doing amazing things on Instagram every day, but we also invest, I believe more than anyone else, in keeping teens safe. We will spend around $5 bn this year alone and we have over 40,000 people working on safety integrity at the company.”

The day before the hearing, new safety measures for children were posted on Instagram. The company will launch its first set of parental control features in March, plus a “Take a Break” feature, which reminds users to pause their scrolling after either 10, 20 or 30 minutes. The company already restricts target advertising and adult contact for accounts owned by teenagers.

Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, described the new features as “half measures” and called for legislation to be passed to keep children safe online.

“This is a case of too little, too late," said Ms Blackburn. “Because now there is bipartisan momentum, both here and in the House, to tackle these problems we are seeing with Big Tech."

“While it’s not true that we focus our entire marketing budget towards teens, we’ve said many times that teens are one of our most important communities because they spot and set early trends. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that they are a part of our marketing strategy,” a Facebook company spokesperson told The Independent.

Mr Mosseri maintained that his company “can be a positive force in young people’s lives,” and recognised that troubled teens also use the platform. “I believe Instagram can help in those critical moments – that’s one of the things that our research has suggested as well. To me, this is the most important work we can do – taking on complex issues like bullying and social comparison, and making changes.”