Meta Sued By States Claiming Insta And Facebook Cause Harm In Children And Teens

[The_DADDY]

Dozens of states are suing Meta, alleging the tech giant has deliberately engineered its social media platforms Instagram and Facebook to be addictive to children and teens.

 

Attorneys general from states ranging from California to Wisconsin filed federal and state lawsuits on Tuesday, accusing Meta of intentionally turning kids into social-media addicts. The lawsuits claim that Meta was motivated to keep children hooked in order to boost profits, and allege that Meta routinely collects data on children under 13 without their parents' consent, in violation of federal law.

 

In a joint complaint filed Tuesday in federal court, 33 states claim that Meta's business practices violate the federal Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), as well as other state consumer protection laws. Eight other states filed similar actions in state courts.

 

It's not the newest of news but interesting all the same.

Your thoughts?

 

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/meta-sued-facebook-instagram-children-teens-harm-mental-health/

[Longcol]

13 minutes ago, The_DADDY said:

Dozens of states are suing Meta, alleging the tech giant has deliberately engineered its social media platforms Instagram and Facebook to be addictive to children and teens.

 

Attorneys general from states ranging from California to Wisconsin filed federal and state lawsuits on Tuesday, accusing Meta of intentionally turning kids into social-media addicts. The lawsuits claim that Meta was motivated to keep children hooked in order to boost profits, and allege that Meta routinely collects data on children under 13 without their parents' consent, in violation of federal law.

 

In a joint complaint filed Tuesday in federal court, 33 states claim that Meta's business practices violate the federal Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), as well as other state consumer protection laws. Eight other states filed similar actions in state courts.

 

It's not the newest of news but interesting all the same.

Your thoughts?

 

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/meta-sued-facebook-instagram-children-teens-harm-mental-health/

American news feeds appear to be addictive to The_DADDY.

[The_DADDY]

4 minutes ago, Longcol said:

American news feeds appear to be addictive to The_DADDY.

The_DADDY's posts appear to be addictive to Longcol 🤔

[Longcol]

4 minutes ago, The_DADDY said:

The_DADDY's posts appear to be addictive to Longcol 🤔

Nope - but your insistence to bold and underline all your quotes doesn't half do my head in............

Edited January 12 by Longcol

[The_DADDY]

14 minutes ago, Longcol said:

Nope -

Snipped 

The evidence suggests otherwise. 

14 minutes ago, Longcol said:

Snipped 

 but your insistence to bold and underline all your quotes doesn't half do my head in............

I know. You've said so before. 

[Mister M]

I'm not a user of any of the main social media platforms (like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok etc.), but I do remember years ago reading an informative article about social media usage; and it referenced a documentary about when many of the social media bosses were interviewed, and they were asked, "would you allow your children to use these platforms?" The candid response from all the participants was "no".

I've no idea if it is 'addictive', but I do know that if I had children, which I don't, I wouldn't allow them a smart phone until they were at least 14. And even at that age, many children are just not emotionally mature enough to behave responsibly, and resilient enough to deal with some of the negative consequences of social media - the bullying, the need to fit in to whatever trend someone on there says is popular, the constant demand to update and curate their best lives on the platforms, and the complete lack of a moral centre at the heart of it. 

I certainly do think that those platforms should be moderated much more, so that harmful content is removed.

I do think parents have a responsibility to talk to their children about their 'online lives' and habits, and to be tech savvy, so they can be proactive in monitoring what their children are watching. However, that doesn't happen often enough. 

The internet could be such a liberating force, a great tool for learning and connecting as well as something which could be used for good. However people being people, and children often being very cruel, it sometimes degenerates to the lowest common denominator.

If children or indeed anyone does use it, and they find it addictive, then they need to be guided away from their devices to learn about the real world outside of their screens. They'll probably be less stressed and feel more fulfilled engaging with the real world.

Edited January 13 by Mister M

[El Cid]

1 hour ago, The_DADDY said:

It's not the newest of news but interesting all the same.

Your thoughts?

 

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/meta-sued-facebook-instagram-children-teens-harm-mental-health/

What about video games, they are quite adictive for young people, violent films?