Zuckerberg Apologizes to Child Victims’ Families; Durbin Promises Action
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday apologized to the families of social media-related victims during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing. As in previous hearings, the lawmakers vowed they would approve laws holding Big Tech more accountable for children's online safety.
During questioning from Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., Zuckerberg rose from the witness table, turned to the audience and addressed victims' families, reiterating a point he made repeatedly during the hearing: Meta must provide industry-leading tools that will keep kids safe. The company must ensure “no one has to go through the types of things that your families have had to suffer,” he said. Dressed in black, the families held up large photos of their deceased children when Zuckerberg and the other tech CEOs entered the hearing room. The children died in suicides and other social media-related incidents.
The CEOs of Meta, TikTok, X, Discord and Snap offered “borderline bullshit, wrapped up in” promises to work with legislators, said Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. During a news conference following the hearing, the senator conceded Congress also is blameworthy for failing to pass meaningful legislation. But during the hearing he said that if Congress waits for industry to solve the problem of child online safety, “we’re going to die waiting.”
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., told us he spoke with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., this week, and Schumer is committed to "working with us" to get the Kids Online Safety Act to the Senate floor. The CEOs were "irrelevant” and their “theatrical performances” in the hearing didn't address the real problems of establishing legal safeguards, he said: “We can’t do it in hearings. We have to do it by law.” Schumer didn’t acknowledge a question about the likelihood of children’s privacy legislation getting floor time when he was asked Wednesday on Capitol Hill.
“Chuck has his hands full every week trying to keep up with the issues before the floor,” Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Il., told us. “I hope we have the strong bipartisan support to convince him to move smoothly on a bipartisan basis.”
“Mark Zuckerberg just apologized on national television, so there’s some acknowledgment there, however late, that maybe his product that has made him a multibillionaire has actually been terrible for teenagers,” Hawley told us.
It’s “unacceptable” these companies can’t be taken to court when they inflict harm, and holding them accountable is the only way to change their practices, Durbin said. He added during the news conference with Graham that “accountability” through legal suits is the only way to get the companies to change. This was a recurring theme during the hearing, too.
Zuckerberg told the committee that some age-verification issues can be solved with legislation requiring online app stores to verify parental consent before a child purchases and downloads an app.
Zuckerberg dismissed claims that social media use and youth mental health are directly linked. People “talk about” it as if it’s something that’s been proven, but “the bulk of scientific evidence does not support" it, he said.
Hawley cited internal Meta research showing Instagram is harmful to the mental health of teenage girls and leads to body image issues for one in three girls. Zuckerberg told him Meta’s job is building tools, so parents can ensure they and their children are safe on the platforms. Several lawmakers responded that the tools confuse parents.
Durbin urged support for his Strengthening Transparency and Obligation to Protect Children Suffering from Abuse and Mistreatment (Stop CSAM) Act, which would subject companies to civil liability if they intentionally host or share child sexual abuse material or aid and abet predators. Snap works extremely hard to find predators without the threat of civil liability, said Snap CEO Evan Spiegel. Discord CEO Jason Citron agreed CSAM is “disgusting” and said the company is open to continued dialogue on the legislation.
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew said his company is scheduled to spend $2 billion on trust and safety in 2024. That figure “sounds like a lot of money” until you realize TikTok is making hundreds of billions of dollars, said Graham. TikTok largely supports the spirit of the Stop CSAM Act, but lingering questions about implementation are a problem, Chew said.
X CEO Linda Yaccarino testified her company is committed to raising industry standards and eagerly anticipates continued conversation about legislation. As a mother, Yaccarino said she shares lawmakers' “sense of urgency.”
Zuckerberg said he generally agrees with the sentiments of many of the bills, but his company advocates changing certain requirements. He didn’t provide details, instead reverting to Meta’s vow of addressing the issue via app stores.
In a related event, the White House on Wednesday hosted a listening session with the Kids Online Health & Safety Task Force. NTIA Administrator Alan Davidson, who participated, said the task force's goal is identifying “concrete solutions” that will have a meaningful impact. Methods for improving industry design standards and empowering parents will be key, he said. Similar to what the senators said during the hearing, Davidson said, “We have seen enough and heard enough to know that we need to act.”