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Senators compare Facebook to Big Tobacco, say Instagram knowingly harms teens


Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) looks on as Antigone Davis, Director, Global Head of Safety, Facebook testifies virtually during a Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety and Data Security hearing on children's online safety and mental health on Capitol Hill on September 30, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Tom Brenner-Pool/Getty Images)
Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) looks on as Antigone Davis, Director, Global Head of Safety, Facebook testifies virtually during a Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety and Data Security hearing on children's online safety and mental health on Capitol Hill on September 30, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Tom Brenner-Pool/Getty Images)
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Senators confronted Facebook's global head of safety Thursday claiming the company had evidence its products harmed teens, yet repeatedly concealed that information from lawmakers and the public.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., chair of the consumer protection subcommittee, blasted Facebook for hiding research that showed its products contributed to heightened anxiety, negative self-image, eating disorders and problematic usage among teens.

"In truth, Facebook has taken Big Tobacco's playbook. It has hidden its own research on addiction and the toxic effects of its products. It has attempted to deceive the public and us in Congress about what it knows and it has weaponized childhood vulnerabilities against children themselves," Blumenthal charged.

Senators referred to documents provided to them by a Facebook whistleblower. The documents included internal company research acknowledging teens “have an addict's narrative about their use" of the photo-sharing app, Instagram. Additional research found teens "often feel 'addicted' and know that what they're seeing is bad for their mental health but feel unable to stop themselves."

Facebook's Antigone Davis argued that the research was being misinterpreted and that the studies showed, in most cases, that more teens felt Instagram helped them cope with serious issues rather than causing harm.

"I want to be clear that this research is not a bombshell," Davis told skeptical lawmakers.

Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., also drew a comparison between Big Tech and Big Tobacco companies, who lied through the early 1990s about cigarettes being addictive, causing cancer, heart disease and other health problems. Markey accused company leaders of "pushing a product that they know is harmful to the health of young people ... so Facebook can make money."

Davis shot back, saying the social media platforms "add value" and "enrich teens' lives," allowing them to connect with friends and family.

Davis repeatedly denied the products caused addiction. She said the company was developing a "take a break" feature, that would allow users to set a time limit for online sessions. The feature has not yet been launched.

Facebook also denied its products were designed to keep users engaged. Davis cited an example of the company making changes to the newsfeed, with the knowledge that it would impact time spent on the site by 50 million hours per day.

Blumenthal, who sued tobacco companies in the 1990s as the attorney general of Connecticut, told Sinclair Broadcast Group the similarities were too clear to ignore. "The most compelling evidence against these companies were from their own files," he said of Big Tobacco. "Just as here, the most compelling evidence against Instagram and Facebook come from their own studies and research."

Lawmakers reportedly received thousands of pages of internal Facebook research and other documents from a whistleblower who is scheduled to testify before the committee next Tuesday. The research included surveys of users who suffered from depression, suicidal thoughts, eating disorders, loneliness and other issues, attesting that Instagram made those problems worse. Though many users said the platform either helped or had no effect.

In one study, Facebook researchers characterized the effects of using Instagram as "a perfect storm...that exacerbates downward spirals." A survey from April 2021 found a quarter of teen girls felt discouraged about their lives and worse about themselves after using Instagram.

Pressed by Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, on how many young users took their lives because of the platforms, Davis explained the research was "not causal." She noted that the teens who became suicidal through Instagram were only 0.5% of those surveyed. She also touted Facebook's efforts to detect and remove suicide-related content and redirect users to more helpful content.

The social media giant took a similar approach to eating disorder content and announced it is experimenting with "nudges" to redirect users to more uplifting posts if they seem to be going "down a rabbit hole."

Researchers also found 6% of American teens who reported suicidal thoughts said those thoughts began on Instagram. The statistic raised alarms, as teen suicides continue to rise.

Most lawmakers were unimpressed with Facebook's response. "People in companies find out bad things about products all the time," Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., said after the hearing. "The question is when you find out, what do you do about it? And it appears here they were doing nothing about it until the reporters... put the information out."

Thursday's hearing followed on the heels of a Wall Street Journal report showing Instagram knew its platform was harmful to the mental of health many young users, particularly teen girls. Facebook pushed back on the report over the weekend saying "the overall effects of Instagram are positive" for teens.

Amid backlash to the report, Facebook announced it was pausing its "Instagram for Kids" app. The program drew criticism from parents, experts, lawmakers and regulators concerned the company was taking advantage of younger users. Currently, Facebook requires users to be 13 or older to join its platforms.

The company did not commit to making other internal research on teens available to lawmakers or the public. Davis also suggested that the whistleblower, who provided documents to the Senate, would not be protected from legal repercussions. She pledged that the individual would not face retaliation for testifying before Congress next week.

Senators have held three hearings aimed at drafting legislation to protect children and teens from the harms of social media. The committee plans to hear from the leaders of other platforms in the coming weeks.


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