Sarah Tew / CNET
According to reports, Facebook’s internal research on Instagram has raised serious concerns about the impact of the photo-sharing app on teen mental health.
In studies conducted over the past three years, Facebook researchers have found that Instagram is “harmful to a considerable percentage” of young users, especially teens, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday. According to research presented in 2019, Instagram made the problem of body image worse for one in three teens. The teens also said Instagram raised rates of anxiety and depression, the Journal reported, citing internal company documents.
On Tuesday, Instagram, owned by Facebook, said it is continuing its research to understand young people’s experiences on the app.
“The question for many people is whether social media is good or bad for people,” Karina Newton, Instagram’s head of public policy, wrote in a blog post. “Research on this is mixed; it can be both. On Instagram, we analyze the benefits and risks of what we do.”
Newton added that Instagram has done “extensive work around harassment, suicide and self-harm and eating disorders” to make the app a safe place for everyone. The company also focuses on addressing negative social comparison and body image, Newton said, and is developing ways to “jump in if we see people stopping at certain types of content.”
For years, people have called apps like Instagram to weigh in on people’s mental well-being. Instagram has been criticized by users, advocacy groups and lawmakers for harming harmful content and fostering anxiety and depression, especially among younger audiences. Earlier this year, reports revealed that Instagram plans to launch a platform for under-13s.
The magazine report attracted criticism on Facebook from lawmakers on Tuesday. Meaning. Marsha Blackburn, Republican of Tennessee, and Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, said they would launch an investigation into Facebook’s knowledge of the negative impact reported by Instagram on teens.
“Clearly Facebook is incapable of taking responsibility,” the senators said in a statement. “When they were given the opportunity to learn about the impact of Instagram on young users, Facebook provided evasive responses that were misleading and obscured clear evidence of significant harm.”
Blackburn and Blumenthal said they were in contact with the Facebook whistleblower and would “look for more documents and prosecute witnesses.”
Instagram’s research is part of an “internal communications group” reviewed by the magazine. On Monday, the Journal reported this Facebook exempted millions of high-profile users, including celebrities and politicians, of some or all of the standards in their community, as part of a program called XCheck. A Facebook spokesman said the program was intended to give some Facebook pages a “second layer of review to make sure we have properly implemented our policies.”