"We knew. We knew that social media was damaging our children. We knew that algorithms were feeding us rage bait because rage keeps us scrolling. We knew that phones in schools were destroying our kids' ability to concentrate. We knew that online platforms were eroding trust, spreading misinformation, and fracturing communities. We knew all of this-and yet we did almost nothing."
"Study after study documented the links between social media use and teen anxiety, depression, and self-harm. Whistleblowers showed us that platforms knew their products were harmful and chose profit over safety. Parents watched their children disappear into screens and felt powerless. Teachers watched attention spans collapse. And what was our collective response? We tutted. We worried. We shared concerned articles-on social media, naturally."
Society recognized that social media and platform algorithms harmed children by promoting rage, eroding concentration, and spreading misinformation, yet took almost no effective action. Research over a decade linked social media use to teen anxiety, depression, and self-harm, and whistleblowers revealed platforms prioritized profit over safety. Parents and teachers experienced mounting harm and powerlessness as attention spans collapsed. Public reactions were limited to expression of concern and passive hope for market correction. Late policy measures such as school phone bans and age-verification laws now appear hurried, disruptive, and insufficient. Tolerance of known harms produced delayed, reactive solutions across institutions.
Read at Psychology Today
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