Facebook Pausing Instagram Kids Amid Pushback From Lawmakers, Parents, and Child Advocates

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Instagram Kids Pause Overview: 

• Who: Facebook announced it is “pausing” its work on Instagram Kids, a version of Instagram meant for children between the ages of 10 and 12. 
• Why: The company faced pushback from lawmakers, child advocates, and parents who allege the new platform would be detrimental to children.
• Where: Instagram Kids would be available nationwide.

Facebook says it is “pausing” its work on Instagram Kids, a version of Instagram meant for children under the age of 13, following pushback from lawmakers, parents, and child advocates. 

The decision comes on the heels of a report released by The Wall Street Journal which found the photo sharing platform has a negative effect on the mental health of teens — primarily teenage girls. 

In May, attorney generals from 40 states asked Facebook to discontinue its Instagram Kids idea, citing research which shows social media can harm youth.  

Instagram head Adam Mosseri said in a statement announcing the pause that he understands people’s concerns, and vowed that Instagram Kids would ultimately be a positive thing.

“While we stand by the need to develop this experience, we’ve decided to pause this project,” Mosseri said. “This will give us time to work with parents, experts, policymakers and regulators, to listen to their concerns, and to demonstrate the value and importance of this project for younger teens online today.”

Instagram Kids is meant to be used by children aged between 10 and 12 years old, according to the company, which says it will be free of advertisements and will require permission from parents to join. 

Mosseri reiterated that he believes Instagram Kids can be a way to provide a safe social media experience for children who are going to be on the internet regardless. 

“We started this project to address an important problem seen across our industry: kids are getting phones younger and younger, misrepresenting their age, and downloading apps that are meant for those 13 or older,” Mosseri said. 

Allegations involving children and social media have been the source of many class action lawsuits over the years. Just last month, TikTok agreed to a $1.1 million class action settlement to resolve claims it stored the information of minors. 

Google, meanwhile, escaped a class action lawsuit this summer filed over allegations the company harvested the data of children to use for targeted advertising. Facebook similarly dodged a class action lawsuit filed in 2014 that alleged the company used the names and likeness of minors in third party advertising. 

In 2017, Disney faced a class action lawsuit alleging it used gaming apps to illegally collect data from minors. Disney, along with various mobile app providers, ended up settling in 2020 to resolve the claims. 

Do you believe Instagram Kids is a good idea? Let us know in the comments! 

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