By: The New York TImes
April 15, 2021
An international coalition of 35 children’s and consumer groups called on Instagram on Thursday to scrap its plans to develop a version of the popular photo-sharing app for users under age 13.
Instagram is pushing for a separate children’s app after years of complaints from legislators and parents that the platform has been slow to identify underage users and protect them from sexual predators and bullying.
But in a letter to Mark Zuckerberg, the chief executive of Facebook, which owns Instagram, the nonprofit groups warned that a children’s version would not mitigate such problems. While 10- to 12-year-olds with Instagram accounts would be unlikely to switch to a “babyish version” of the app, the groups said, it could hook even younger users on endless routines of photo-scrolling and body-image shame.