Facebook Knows Instagram Is 'Toxic' For Teenage Girls: WSJ Citing Documents

Sep 18, 2021, 12:49 IST

Instagram is 'toxic' for adolescent females, according to Facebook: The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) cites documents.

After a study revealed that Facebook knew the social media app was toxic for young females, lawmakers are targeting the company's development of Instagram for kids.

Hyderabad: According to The Wall Street Journal, which cited internal Facebook papers, Facebook experts researched how Instagram impacts the mental health of its users for three years and found Instagram "toxic" for adolescent females.

A Facebook presentation slide said, "We make body image issues worse for 1 in 3 teen girls," Suicidal ideas among teens were also discussed on Facebook, according to the research.

Both Republican and Democratic legislators are urging Facebook to discontinue its Instagram for Kids project.

They're enraged by a report that revealed Facebook knew Instagram was hurting adolescent females.

Since its launch in March, parents, child safety organisations, and politicians have expressed their displeasure with Instagram for Kids.

Following a bombshell report from the Wall Street Journal, lawmakers are targeting Facebook's Instagram for Kids initiative, urging the company to cease development of a version of Instagram for children under the age of 13.