2023-10-26 01:46:00
BISMARCK, N.D. (KFYR) – A lot of children don’t remember a time before social media and are active users on apps like Instagram. North Dakota and regarding 40 other states are suing Instagram’s parent company Meta, saying the organization knew the mental health risks its app posed for teenage users.
Many people say that, when used properly, social media can bring people together. However, both they and the majority of states say apps like Instagram can do more harm than good.
Among the reasons for this, students at Bismarck State College say that these kinds of apps make it too easy to compare themselves to others.
“I might post something that I’m passionate regarding, and it would get no likes, and that would make me feel awful because all that effort is downhill. But if someone puts something simple, like just bobbing their head up and down, and it gets a million likes, that’s just discouraging and it upsets people,” said Joshua Alarcon, a junior at BSC.
“People normally are posting only the best parts of their lives. They’re not posting their worst moments, which in some way, I think, hurts other people’s mental health because they have a hard time realizing other people are also going through bad things,” said John Johnson-Ripplinger, a freshman at BSC.
Other students think that while apps like Instagram are ultimately bad for teens’ mental health, it also has benefits that shouldn’t be ignored.
“I do think there’s something to be said for the fact that it is a good thing we have access to so much information now. There’s also something to be said for the parental role in kind of controlling and helping their kid navigate through the electronic world as well,” said Kade Langemo, a sophomore at BSC.
The lawsuit once morest Meta claims the company has taken advantage of children by making apps like Instagram addicting.
In 2021, The Wall Street Journal released some of Meta’s internal papers that showed the company knew regarding the negative effects Instagram might have on teens.
Mental health professionals like Valerie Meyers, a counselor at The Kid’s Therapy Center LLC, agree that parents have a duty to prepare their kids for a world that’s mostly digital.
“Parents need to get educated so they can talk regarding it with their kids. It’s not going away, right? I know that we have a lot of parents who just pull it and say they can’t have it. It’s also a way to socialize, so there’s a balance,” said Meyers.
The students weren’t optimistic that the lawsuit once morest Meta would bring regarding any lasting changes.
Some attorneys general working the case have compared this lawsuit to the Big Tobacco lawsuits in the late 90s and early 2000s.
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