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The harm social media does to kids has been well documented. Perhaps the most well-known exposé is The Wall Street Journal’s The Facebook Files‚ published in October 2021. Congress has held several hearings since that publication. On Wednesday‚ the Senate Committee on the Judiciary is holding another hearing centered around Big Tech’s failures to protect kids from sexual exploitation on social media platforms. The question is‚ are our elected officials willing to hold these companies accountable when they don’t protect kids? Senators will hear from the CEOs of Meta (parent company of Facebook and Instagram)‚ Snap (parent company of Snapchat)‚ X‚ TikTok‚ and Discord. Senators are right to expose the failings of these social media companies to the general public and rally support from their colleagues and constituents‚ but they should not rely on any actions from these CEOs to secure the change that is desperately needed. If we take economist Milton Friedman’s famous maxim as an absolute truth‚ that the only moral duty a corporation has is to maximize shareholder value as long as it stays within the rules of the game‚ then we can understand that social media companies are incentivized—if not obligated—to appeal to as many people as possible and engage people for as long as possible. Fifty-eight percent of U.S. teens 13-17 use TikTok‚ 51% use Snapchat‚ 47% use Instagram‚ and 19% use Facebook. These companies all prohibit users under age 13 due to restrictions in the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act‚ but age restrictions are enforced only by an honor code. A recent investigation initiated by the attorney general of New Mexico uncovered that Meta knew of Facebook accounts with users under the age of 13 but failed to disable or remove the accounts. In this case‚ Meta was not adhering to the rules of the game‚ and Attorney General Raúl Torrez was right to hold the company accountable. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and the other CEOs testifying Wednesday will point to the many steps they have taken to combat child sexual abuse material and other harmful content on their platforms‚ like suicide ideation‚ eating disorders‚ bullying‚ and violence. For its part‚ Meta has submitted significantly more reports of child sexual abuse material to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children than Snapchat‚ TikTok‚ Discord‚ and X combined. Earlier this month‚ Meta announced new content restrictions for teen users on Facebook and Instagram. TikTok disables messaging for users who attest they are younger than 16. Discord finally introduced parental controls in its gaming communications platform in 2023. Snap got ahead of Sens. Marsha Blackburn’s‚ R-Tenn.‚ and Richard Blumenthal’s‚ D-Conn.‚ inevitable questions at the hearing and endorsed their Kids Online Safety Act. These are all positive steps but not enough to mitigate the harms‚ despite each platform’s prohibition of‚ or zero-tolerance policy for‚ child exploitation or sexual abuse material. Several news reports have exposed the tools that predators use to find and groom kids online: “The People You Know” feature on Facebook suggesting people to add as friends; the algorithm that shows users content similar to what they’ve been viewing based on likes‚ comments‚ and other forms of engagement on Instagram; and the public livestream feature on TikTok that allows others to comment and submit coins in the form of emoji that can be converted into cash by the person streaming the content. It works for these companies to add and support protective features like screen time notices‚ disabling private messaging‚ and filtering sensitive content to show critics they are doing something because they know not everyone will opt in to these features‚ and it creates the illusion of safety while ensuring they lose few users. This is why we are not seeing meaningful actions that make it harder for kids under 13 to create accounts. These companies will not go as far as raising the allowable age for users on social media websites because they stand to lose too much revenue. During the hearing‚ they will say that they care about the safety of kids online‚ but do not think for a minute that they put this ahead of their bottom line. The social media companies will also stress that their platforms have great benefits for kids to stay connected with friends. However‚ research shows a decline in the number of people posting actual content and the frequency at which they do but an increase in the time spent on the app just consuming content. Social media has become predominantly a platform for influencers or aspiring influencers to get famous and make money. Users are consuming social media as a form of entertainment‚ and many feel that they have little control over what they view. Bots and fraud are becoming more rampant. For example‚ read the comments of a public post‚ and you will see several comments thanking Mr. So-and-So for changing their life and setting them up with $5‚000 a week from passive income‚ or comments from an account with a pornographic photo saying something like‚ “Am I hot?” Click on any of these accounts‚ and they either have zero posts and followers or similar photos posted in quick succession and promises that you can get rich just like they did or links to external adult-oriented websites. How are platforms that have evolved into consumerist entertainment and voyeurism‚ riddled with scammers and predators‚ even remotely appropriate for kids? Instagram said in July 2023 that users on the app spent most of their time in their messages from other users (direct messages or DMs‚ as they are abbreviated)‚ further showing an evolution in how people use the platform. Kids can text or use apps that are strictly for messaging if they want to text or share photos or videos with their friends. They don’t need a social media account to do that. Plus‚ they are less likely to be targeted‚ since texting or messaging apps like WhatsApp don’t connect users and strangers through content by design. Leave social media for adults‚ who are not immune to the perils of social media but less vulnerable than kids. The Senate Judiciary Committee passed a number of bills that address gaps in the law to stop the exploitation of children online‚ improve reporting requirements to the CyberTipline run by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children‚ seek justice for victims‚ and hold platforms more accountable. Two of these bills passed the Senate and are waiting for action in the House. None of them have become law yet. These are also important steps to minimize the proliferation and dissemination of child sexual abuse material on social media‚ but they do not immunize kids from the risk of predation online‚ simply because kids and predators will still be on social media. Last month‚ I wrote about establishing age verification for pornography websites. I’d argue that prohibiting kids from using social media and using age verification (not age attestation) to adhere to the requirement—and holding platforms liable for any violations—is the best way to minimize harms to kids on social media. Many states are considering such measures. Is Congress willing to truly take Big Tech to task to protect kids as well? Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com‚ and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the URL or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state. The post Congress: Stop Expecting Big Tech to Protect Kids Unless You Make Them appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Infuriating: Iconic Female Surfer Booted in Favor of Fake Woman

Law enforcement authorities released information about a massive operation targeting human traffickers that led to more than 500 arrests. Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said in a media briefing Monday that police had arrested 539 people in the criminal operation. "Human trafficking and child exploitation are devastating crimes that prey on some of the most vulnerable members of our community‚'' the sheriff said. Police rescued 54 adults and 11 children from exploitation during the action dubbed Operation Reclaim and Rebuild‚ he added. 40 of the arrested were suspected "sexual traffickers or exploiters'' while another 271 arrested were suspected "sex buyers.'' Among those rescued was a 14-year-old girl. He went on to say that the operation was in its tenth year and ended in January‚ known as human trafficking awareness month‚ but that police worked all year to arrest human traffickers. Joining Luna at the media briefing was controversial Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón‚ who won his position with financial help from left-wing billionaire George Soros. Residents of Los Angeles have vehemently criticized Soros over soft prosecutorial policies that they say have led to an increase in crime. The operation included more than 95 local‚ state‚ and federal agencies‚ including the Los Angeles Regional Human Trafficking Task Force. Alan Smyth‚ the CEO of human trafficking advocacy group Saving Innocence‚ said that his group saw an uptick in human trafficking ahead of the World Series baseball championships in Los Angeles in 2020‚ and they expected to see the same ahead of the NFL Super Bowl. Los Angeles Sheriff Alex Villanueva said the purpose of the operation was to “send a message to pimps‚ exploiters and buyers that it is unacceptable to buy another human being for sexual purposes." Here's a local news report about the arrests: Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors‚ sign up for our newsletters‚ and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Iconic "Star Trek" actor William Shatner responded to a report that European Union officials were looking to ban the classic show motto‚ "to boldly go where no man has gone before‚" to be more gender inclusive. The motto was a part of the mission statement of the Enterprise spaceship in the sci-fi series‚ but government officials say it's no longer politically correct and should be changed to "no one" instead of "no man." Shatner posted screenshots of articles documenting the policy suggestion and criticized the officials. "Presentism at work yet again. Why start at Trek?" he wrote on a post on social media. "Isn’t it better to start at the beginning and redo foundation material such as the Magna Carta‚ religious writings‚ works of Shakespeare before worrying about a silly TV show opening that reflects social commentary of the time?" he added. "If people are offended by 6 seconds of dialogue recorded in 1966 without a modicum of understanding of the social issues at the time there’s bigger issues that they need to deal with first - like educating themselves‚" Shatner concluded. His missive had more than 10k likes of support. Shatner previously denounced "presentism" and offered a definition of the concept. "I am so tired of presentism &; moronic people who continue to place today’s value systems on the past to judge‚" Shatner posted in 2021. — (@) "They cannot comprehend that the fact they have the freedom to judge is because of what brave people did in the past‚" he added. "Education needs a wake up call." Shatner made history in 2020 when he was included as a passenger on the Blue Origin spaceflight and became the oldest person in space at age 90. Here's more about Shatner's historic flight: 90-Year-Old ‘Captain Kirk’ Goes to Space For Real www.youtube.com Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors‚ sign up for our newsletters‚ and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia said in a statement on Tuesday that his wife had been hospitalized after a car accident on Monday.Gayle Conelly Manchin is federal co-chair of the Appalachian Regional Commission‚ a position to which she was nominated by President Joe Biden."On Monday‚ my wife Gayle and her colleague Guy Land were involved in a car accident on the way from the airport to the hotel in Birmingham‚ Alabama for an Appalachian Regional Commission event that was planned for today. Both were admitted to UAB Hospital and are receiving excellent care. She remains in stable condition but will stay there for a couple of days for precautionary measures. We want to thank the first responders who answered the call and were first on-site to provide assistance and support‚" Sen. Joe Manchin said in a statement.The senator and his wife have been married for more than 50 years.Manchin‚ whose term ends in early 2025‚ announced last year that he would not seek re-election.The lawmaker has said that he thinks President Joe Biden has veered too far left.Manchin has also sounded the alarm about America's ever-expanding national debt. "The national debt is the greatest threat our country faces — and we are rapidly approaching the crisis point‚" Manchin‚ GOP Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah‚ Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-Mich.)‚ and Rep. Scott Peters (D-Calif.) declared in a recent opinion piece. "There is growing appetite on both sides of the aisle to address our national debt. It is time for Congress to put the interests of the country ahead of political expediency and get us on sound fiscal footing before it is too late."Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors‚ sign up for our newsletters‚ and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

"There’s something good about working for a living. You know exactly what you’re getting and you know exactly where it’s going. I’m very happy like that." The post Steve Marriott Interview: ‘Paying the Bills’ appeared first on Best Classic Bands.