'Not far enough' - US parents and teens on Meta's new limits for young users

## "Not Far Enough": US Parents and Teens React to Meta's New Youth Restrictions

For Elizabeth Cardner, a Houston, Texas mother of two girls, Meta's recently announced limitations on how teenagers can use its platforms are a welcome indication of increased awareness regarding social media's potential dangers. However, she expressed to the BBC that these measures are unlikely to provide significant long-term benefits. "It will save a few arguments at home, but it doesn't go far enough," she stated.

This week, Meta unveiled new restrictions across its platforms, including Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp. These changes are part of an $18 billion (£13.25 billion) settlement reached with US states in a lawsuit concerning social media's impact on children. The company committed to implementing a daily two-hour time limit, concealing the number of likes a post receives, disabling autoplay on videos, muting push notifications during school hours, and prohibiting extreme make-up filters. Additionally, Meta announced revisions to its age-verification process and parental controls, and agreed to appoint an independent auditor to ensure the implementation and maintenance of these measures.

While many parents across the US view these restrictions as helpful, skepticism remains. Those who spoke with the BBC described a feeling of being trapped – unable to completely disconnect their children from social media, yet also unable to shield them from the perceived harms it causes. They are awaiting to see the actual impact of these new regulations.

Cardner's 14-year-old daughter, Paige, believes the restrictions will foster "more real-life scenarios" and reduce the "fake content" she says dominates social media. Both she and her sister approve of hiding like counts and limiting filters. However, Paige views these improvements as temporary, "since AI is evolving." She elaborated, "People will find new ways to have fake filters, and correct certain parts of their videos or pictures. So I think it'll help until people use other resources to try and find new ways to do that." Cardner noted that completely banning her daughters from social media would only lead to their exclusion by peers. "Damned if you do, damned if you don't," she remarked. "I don't think there's any winning on it."

Andria Rose, another mother of two teenagers living near Boston, Massachusetts, told the BBC she feels defenseless. "No matter how much I protect my kids, Facebook, Instagram – they're coming in and literally, like, taking them out of their rooms," she said. Despite calling Meta's changes "fantastic," Rose does not believe they fully address the core issue. "They're trying to limit the drug, but they're not controlling the drug," she asserted. "They're still dealing." Rose also highlighted her own struggle with social media, which costs her sleep. "I'm hooked," she admitted. "So what do you think is going to happen to a kid?"

The settlement was announced on Wednesday amidst a highly anticipated trial where Meta owner Mark Zuckerberg was expected to testify. The agreement did not include any admission of fault. The lawsuit, initially filed in 2023 by 29 US states, alleged that Meta deliberately designed its platforms to be addictive and misrepresented risks. It also accused the company of violating a federal law regarding the collection of children's personal information. The settlement, announced this week, encompassed 48 states, the District of Columbia, and three US territories.

Numerous studies have indicated that social media is detrimental to mental health, particularly for children. Last year, a BBC investigation revealed that children were being exposed to content related to bullying, suicide, and weapons on social media platforms. For Rose, Meta's settlement payment "is like throwing a couple of dollar bills at a problem," considering the company's substantial earnings and her belief that the industry profited significantly from children during the pandemic.

Joanie Story, a mother of four boys in Long Island, raised concerns about another aspect of Meta's announcement: its conditions involving other platforms. The company will withhold $5 billion of the settlement, releasing it only if YouTube, TikTok, and other platforms enter into similar agreements. Meta also stated it would further reduce its time limit to one hour if other platforms implement comparable restrictions. Story described this as "petty." "That's like saying: 'You know, we have the ability to fix what is broken, but we're only gonna fix it halfway,'" she commented.

Nevertheless, Story views the new rules as "good controls." She recounted witnessing the consequences of a lack of controls when two of her sons were accidentally exposed to explicit content on a non-Meta platform. One boy has been in therapy for four years, she shared. "It's almost like being abused," Story said.

Mark SooHoo, a father of three living in the Chicago suburbs, believes social media and smartphones are inextricably linked and both are harmful to young people. He is a member of Wait Until 8th, an organization where parents pledge not to provide their children with smartphones until the end of eighth grade, typically when most have completed middle school and are 13 or 14 years old. SooHoo noted that most parents desire to give their children smartphones to prevent them from feeling excluded. "And our message is very clear: We do want them to be left out. We want them to be left out of all the negative impacts of social media," he stated. Instead of relying on companies to address potential harms, SooHoo advocates for more parents to sign the smartphone pledge. "A communal problem requires a communal solution," he concluded.