News Investigation

These 'Toys' Are Killing Our Kids

Jan 2024 🇺🇸 The Hill

Writing in The Hill, Julie Scelfo uses the word 'toys' to describe smartphones and social apps that children use constantly, arguing that despite executives' public assurances about child safety, their companies underinvest in protective design relative to other spending. She contrasts reporting on the scale of Mark Zuckerberg's personal security investment with a cited $270-per-child figure tied to Meta's child-safety-related spending, and repeats her recurring argument that tech trade groups lobby against legislation on attention-holding design, data collection from minors, and privacy protections. The piece calls for the same product-safety standards applied to physical children's toys to apply to the apps and devices children now spend the most time with.

$270-per-child figure cited for Meta's child-safety spending

Scelfo cites a reported $270 figure tied to Meta's child-safety-related spending per child and contrasts it with reporting on the scale of Mark Zuckerberg's personal security investment, arguing corporate child-safety investment is comparatively small.

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CITATION

Scelfo, Julie. "These 'Toys' Are Killing Our Kids." The Hill, January 30, 2024. https://thehill.com/opinion/4438362-these-toys-are-killing-our-kids/

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