<\/p>\n
Facebook is putting its Instagram Kids project on hold amid growing concerns about potential harmful effects on young people, including anxiety and depression.<\/p>\n
The idea is to provide youngsters with the Instagram social media experience but with no ads, more parental control and age-appropriate content.<\/p>\n
U.S. lawmakers and advocacy groups have urged Facebook to scrap the plan entirely for safety concerns.<\/p>\n
“Today is a watershed moment for the growing tech accountability movement and a great day for anyone who believes that children’s wellbeing should come before Big Tech’s profits,” said Josh Golin, executive director of Fairplay, an advocacy group focused on children.<\/p>\n
“We commend Facebook for listening to the many voices who have loudly and consistently told them that Instagram Youth will result in significant harms to children.”<\/p>\n
Golin vowed to continue fighting against Instagram Kids \u201cuntil they permanently pull the plug.\u201d<\/p>\n
While Instagram Kids would require parental permission to join, the company said it was putting the idea on pause to \u201ccontinue to build opt-in parental supervision tools for teens,\u201d the company said in a blog post.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ll continue our work to allow parents to oversee their children\u2019s accounts by expanding these tools to teen accounts (aged 13 and over) on Instagram.\u201d<\/p>\n
The company said the reality is that kids are online and that a product like Instagram Kids would be \u201cbetter for parents.\u201d<\/p>\n