Facebook Puts Hold on Child Version of Instagram as Opposition Grows
2021-09-30
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1Facebook has put a hold on the development of a child version of its Instagram service.
2The move comes after major child advocacy groups and U.S. lawmakers urged Facebook to drop its launch plans for the new service, called Instagram Kids.
3The decision was announced in an online post by Instagram's chief, Adam Mosseri.
4Mosseri said company officials still "stand by the need to develop the (Instagram Kids) experience."
5However, a delay in the project will give Instagram the chance "to work with parents, experts, policymakers and regulators" on how it should move forward.
6Facebook announced plans for Instagram Kids in March.
7Instagram says the application is meant for children between the ages of 10 and 12.
8The company says while the service is designed for kids, it will contain tools for parents to "supervise and control" their child's experience.
9"The reality is that kids are already online," Mosseri said in his online post.
10"And we believe that developing age-appropriate experiences designed specifically for them is far better for parents than where we are today."
11He added that Instagram Kids aims to cut down on cases of children misrepresenting their age so they can download and use apps meant for people over age 13.
12Mosseri said kids will need to get parental permission to join the service and it will not contain advertisements.
13Parents will be able to supervise the time their children spend on the app and control who they can message and follow.
14But the plans have faced opposition from child advocacy groups and some U.S. lawmakers.
15In May, a group of 44 U.S. attorneys general wrote to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
16They urged him to cancel the project because it could harm children.
17The group warned the service could increase cyberbullying and help online predators reach children.
18It also accused Facebook of not taking necessary steps in the past to safeguard user privacy and protect children.
19Facebook faced similar criticism in 2017 when it launched the Messenger Kids app.
20The company said that service was designed as a way for children to communicate through the app with family members and friends approved by parents.
21Child development experts later urged the company to shut down Messenger Kids, but Facebook did not do so.
22Josh Golin is executive director of the online child advocacy group Fairplay.
23He called on Facebook in a statement to permanently end its plans to launch Instagram Kids.
24"We won't stop pressuring Facebook until they permanently pull the plug," Golin said.
25A group of Democratic members of Congress urged the same.
26Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey wrote for the group on Twitter that Facebook's latest decision showed the company had heard the calls to halt plans to launch Instagram Kids.
27He added, however, that the temporary delay is not enough.
28"Facebook must completely abandon this project."
29Mosseri said while work is stopped on Instagram Kids, the company plans to expand its parental supervision tools to Instagram accounts of those 13 and older.
30He said more details on those tools will be shared in the coming months.
31I'm Bryan Lynn.
1Facebook has put a hold on the development of a child version of its Instagram service. 2The move comes after major child advocacy groups and U.S. lawmakers urged Facebook to drop its launch plans for the new service, called Instagram Kids. 3The decision was announced in an online post by Instagram's chief, Adam Mosseri. 4Mosseri said company officials still "stand by the need to develop the (Instagram Kids) experience." However, a delay in the project will give Instagram the chance "to work with parents, experts, policymakers and regulators" on how it should move forward. 5Facebook announced plans for Instagram Kids in March. Instagram says the application is meant for children between the ages of 10 and 12. The company says while the service is designed for kids, it will contain tools for parents to "supervise and control" their child's experience. 6"The reality is that kids are already online," Mosseri said in his online post. "And we believe that developing age-appropriate experiences designed specifically for them is far better for parents than where we are today." 7He added that Instagram Kids aims to cut down on cases of children misrepresenting their age so they can download and use apps meant for people over age 13. 8Mosseri said kids will need to get parental permission to join the service and it will not contain advertisements. Parents will be able to supervise the time their children spend on the app and control who they can message and follow. 9But the plans have faced opposition from child advocacy groups and some U.S. lawmakers. 10In May, a group of 44 U.S. attorneys general wrote to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. They urged him to cancel the project because it could harm children. The group warned the service could increase cyberbullying and help online predators reach children. It also accused Facebook of not taking necessary steps in the past to safeguard user privacy and protect children. 11Facebook faced similar criticism in 2017 when it launched the Messenger Kids app. The company said that service was designed as a way for children to communicate through the app with family members and friends approved by parents. Child development experts later urged the company to shut down Messenger Kids, but Facebook did not do so. 12Josh Golin is executive director of the online child advocacy group Fairplay. He called on Facebook in a statement to permanently end its plans to launch Instagram Kids. "We won't stop pressuring Facebook until they permanently pull the plug," Golin said. 13A group of Democratic members of Congress urged the same. Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey wrote for the group on Twitter that Facebook's latest decision showed the company had heard the calls to halt plans to launch Instagram Kids. He added, however, that the temporary delay is not enough. "Facebook must completely abandon this project." 14Mosseri said while work is stopped on Instagram Kids, the company plans to expand its parental supervision tools to Instagram accounts of those 13 and older. He said more details on those tools will be shared in the coming months. 15I'm Bryan Lynn. 16The Associated Press and Reuters reported on this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the reports for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter Jr. was the editor. 17We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. 18_____________________________________________ 19Words in This Story 20advocacy - n. of expression of support for a particular idea or way of doing things 21kid - n. a child or young person 22regulator - n. to body with the responsibility to control an activity or process, especially by using rules 23application (app) -n. a computer program that carries out a specific job 24appropriate - adj. suitable or right for a particular situation 25cyberbullying - v. the mistreatment or abuse of someone online 26predator - v. someone who follows people in order to harm them or commit a crime against them 27pull the plug - v. (phrasal) to do something that prevents an activity from continuing 28abandon - v. to stop doing an activity before it is finished