USA (Washington Insider Magazine)—In a poignant moment during a congressional hearing on online harms to children, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg expressed remorse to parents of victims who suffered due to social media exploitation. “I’m sorry for everything you have all been through,” he said, as families held up photos of their children who had died as a result of sexual exploitation or harassment online. “No one should go through the things that your families have suffered, and this is why we invest so much. We are going to continue doing industry-wide efforts to make sure no one has to go through what your families have had to endure.”
Similarly, Evan Spiegel, CEO of Snap Inc., offered condolences to parents whose children accessed illegal drugs via Snapchat. In late 2023, over 60 parents filed suit against Snap, claiming the platform facilitated their children’s drug acquisitions leading to overdoses. “I’m so sorry that we have not been able to prevent these tragedies. We work very hard to block all search terms related to drugs on our platform,” Spiegel stated.
Zuckerberg and Spiegel were among five tech executives questioned during the hearing titled “Big Tech and the Online Child Sexual Exploitation Crisis.” The session aimed to examine the growing issue of online child sexual exploitation, with the participation of CEOs from X (formerly Twitter), TikTok, and Discord.
Kristin Bride, holding a photo of her 16-year-old son Carson, attended the hearing, highlighting the personal impact of the issue. However, Zuckerberg’s opening remarks seemed to irritate some, as he claimed that existing scientific evidence does not show a causal link between social media use and worsening mental health among young people. Senator Josh Hawley later criticized him for that assertion.
The Senate chamber was filled with families and advocates, prompting Senator Lindsey Graham to comment on the large turnout. He accused social media companies of “destroying lives and threatening democracy itself,” declaring, “I know you don’t mean it to be so, but you have blood on your hands.”
Chair of the committee, Dick Durbin, emphasized the urgent need to combat online dangers faced by children, calling child sexual exploitation a crisis in America. He stated that the design choices and profit-driven motives of social media platforms have given predators new tools to exploit children. “Their design choices, their failures to adequately invest in trust and safety, their constant pursuit of engagement and profit over basic safety put our kids and grandkids at risk,” Durbin remarked.
The executives present reiterated their commitment to managing children’s online experiences and mitigating harm. Zuckerberg mentioned that Meta has introduced over 30 tools aimed at enhancing child safety in the past eight years, investing $20 billion in safety and security since 2016, and employing around 40,000 individuals for these efforts.
However, a Guardian investigation indicated that Meta has struggled to prevent its platforms from being used for child sex trafficking. In December, New Mexico’s attorney general filed a lawsuit against Meta, alleging that the company enabled adults to groom minors for exploitation. Internal documents revealed in the lawsuit raise serious concerns.
Members of Congress discussed potential legislative solutions to protect children online, asking executives whether they supported various bills, including the Kids Online Safety Act. Snap Inc. previously endorsed the bill, and X also expressed support during the hearing. However, executives from Meta, Discord, and TikTok declined to back the bills outright, prompting criticism from Senator Graham. “The bottom line is that you aren’t going to support any of this,” he stated. “If you’re waiting on these guys to solve the problem, we’re going to die waiting.”
