Instagram’s CEO tried to pacify enraged US senators with a glowing assessment of the photo-sharing app’s influence on teenagers on Wednesday, but they rejected his self-regulation idea, signaling a renewed drive to rein in Big Tech.
Despite documents obtained by a business insider indicating concerns about hazards, Adam Mosseri maintained that the service may aid struggling young people, citing a 2019 study that found Instagram made one in three teenage girls feel worse when they were unhappy with their bodies.
“Sometimes young people can come to Instagram, dealing with difficult things in their lives. I believe that Instagram can help in those critical moments,” Mosseri told a Senate commerce subcommittee, at the latest hearing probing how social media could be hurting teens.
His testimony comes as Facebook parent Meta’s services face a crisis sparked by the company’s own research, which has reignited a years-old US regulatory campaign.
Mosseri proposed a social media industry council to determine best practices for keeping young people safe online, but it was met with skepticism.
Senator Ed Markey, a Big Tech opponent, stated, “That’s self-regulation, that’s status quo, and that just won’t cut it.” “We do require laws, and we require laws to be passed by this body.”
The years-long partisan impasse in Washington appears to have eased somewhat on social media regulation, at least in terms of safeguarding children from overuse, harm to their well-being, and exposure to ill-intentioned adults.
“This is a case of too little, too late,” Senator Marsha Blackburn said of Instagram’s precautions. “Now there is bipartisan support both here and in the House to handle these problems we are witnessing with Big Tech,” she added.
