A landmark lawsuit alleges Meta designed apps to addict children. Meantime, states accuse Roblox of exposing children to predators.
On Cincinnati Edition we talk to a Kentucky mother whose son died by suicide and the lawyer for another local mom who lost her daughter at 13. And we discuss the allegations against Meta and Roblox.
Guests:
- Alexandra Walsh, shareholder, Anapol Weiss
- Stephanie Kuzydym, investigative reporter, The Courier Journal
- Shannon Heacock, Kentucky mother
- Meghan Bobrowsky, technology reporter, The Wall Street Journal
Cincinnati Edition reached out to Meta, Roblox, Discord and Tik Tok for this interview. We received the following statements.
“I’m pleased to announce that Meta has reached an agreement with a bipartisan group of state attorneys general from around the country on a new set of rules governing teens’ use of social media. The framework we’ve negotiated will empower parents to easily manage how their children access our platforms. Our new Time Limit commitments, Night Mode features and usage limits during school hours set the right path forward for our whole industry, but this framework will only work if all our peers join us. Because teens move fluidly across dozens of apps, we need an industry-wide solution. We therefore call on our industry peers, TikTok and YouTube, to implement this new framework, right away. As a parent, I’m proud of both the work Meta has done to protect kids historically, and of this new groundbreaking agreement. But its success depends on all other social media platforms following Meta’s lead.” — CJ Mahoney, Chief Legal Affairs Officer at Meta
“Discord is deeply committed to user safety, and we want our communications platform to be the best place for friends to connect before, during and after playing games. Our terms require all users to be at least 13 to use Discord, and unlike social media platforms that use algorithms to select content and maximize engagement, our service strives to enable organic, real-time interaction and connection. We use a combination of advanced technology and trained safety teams to proactively find and remove content that violates our policies. We maintain strong systems intended to prevent the spread of sexual exploitation and grooming on our platform and also work with other technology companies and safety organizations to improve online safety across the internet. In addition, the Discord Family Center empowers parents and guardians with tools to help their teen have a safer experience online while maintaining privacy." – Discord Spokesperson
Beginning at noon, call 513-419-7100 or email talk@wvxu.org to have your voice heard on this topic. You can catch a recorded replay at 8 p.m.
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