The Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) on Thursday has drawn a parallel between Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta Platforms Inc, and the executives of major tobacco companies. This comparison was made in response to Zuckerberg’s recent statement regarding the impact of social media on mental health.
What Happened: In an interview with CNN, Durbin likened Zuckerberg’s recent statement to the 1994 testimony of tobacco executives who denied the addictive nature of nicotine and the harmful effects of their products.
The Democrat described Zuckerberg’s statement as “outrageous” and criticized the CEO for suggesting that there is no direct link between social media use and negative mental health outcomes.
“That was an outrageous statement by Mr. Zuckerberg, and a man who has the resources that he has, and the advisers he had, should never [have] said anything like that,” said Durbin.
Zuckerberg, in his opening statement Wednesday, said, “Mental health is a complex issue, and the existing body of scientific work has not shown a causal link between using social media and young people having worse mental health outcomes.”
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Why It Matters: During the hearing, which took place on Wednesday, the executives of major social media companies were questioned by senators about their policies to mitigate the risks of online sexual exploitation and the spread of harmful content promoting suicide ideation, self-harm, and eating disorders. Zuckerberg also apologized to the families of children who were victims of abuse on social media platforms. This apology came after a whistleblower at Meta told Congress that Instagram was not doing enough to protect young people from online harassment.
Despite the intense scrutiny, the hearing resulted in little concrete progress. Lawmakers, including Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), criticized the tech platforms for their inability to effectively police themselves. “Collectively, your platforms really suck at policing themselves,” Whitehouse said.
Meanwhile, Meta Platforms on Thursday reported fourth-quarter revenue of $40.11 billion, which was up 25% year-over-year. The revenue total beat a Street consensus estimate of $39.17 billion. According to data from Benzinga Pro, Meta’s stock surged by 15.22% in after-hours trading on Thursday.
Photo by Frederic Legrand – COMEO on Shutterstock
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