Religious Leaders Denounce Mark Zuckerberg’s Instagram Version For Kids
As social media keep on eating into our daily lives, the tech giant behind Instagram has a grand plan of serving children under 13 years a special platform of kid’s Instagram version.
They have targeted children in this respect of social media usage. Christian church leaders —together with other religious leaders are charging Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg to permanently stop the company’s plan of providing an Instagram version for kids. They voiced out their displeasure on Tuesday in a letter sent by advocacy group Fairplay and their Children’s Screen Time Action Network.
The project has already received a lot of opposition since last year. However, the Chief Executive Officer of Meta, Zuckerberg still wants to push his plans forward; —believing children would be protected when using that version.
Part of the letter sent reads:
“After much meditation and prayer, we assert that social media platforms that target immature brains, practice unethical data mining, and are inspired by profit motives are not a tool for the greater good of children,” said the letter, which was signed by more than 70 religious leaders.
The letter from these religious groups, quoted the Bible, Qur’an, Pope Francis, and Buddhist monk Thích Nhất Hạnh.
In reference, they also quoted Zuckerberg, as someone who once said religion is “very important.”
In view of all these issues, spirituality and general life should be cherished in their respective way.
Parents, individuals, and religious organizations are concerned about the effect that plan of Mark Zuckerberg will have on children.
They believe it will have a negative mental effect on them. As young as they are, they are vulnerable to a lot of unhealthy programs and advertisements.
They also believe it will have security issues for the kids. A whistleblower named Francis Haugen exposed some internal documents about the company’s approach to younger users last year. This has brought great awareness to the public.
Lawmakers have also taken a stance to probe into Zuckerberg’s Instagram version for kids. A coalition of state attorneys general is leading the investigation into Meta for promoting Instagram for vulnerable children.
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