Adam Mosseri, Head of Instagram, denies that the move is ‘an acknowledgement that the project is a bad idea,’ but it comes amid backlash to the project and Instagram in general.<\/b>
\nInstagram will \u00ab\u00a0pause\u00a0\u00bb work on a standalone Instagram for Kids app, and fold some of its planned features into the main Instagram app for now. Delaying the launch of Instagram for Kids will give the company \u00ab\u00a0time to work with parents, experts, policymakers and regulators, to listen to their concerns, and to demonstrate the value and importance of this project for younger teens online today,\u00a0\u00bb says Adam Mosseri, Head of Instagram. Mosseri denies that the move is \u00ab\u00a0an acknowledgement that the project is a bad idea.\u00a0\u00bb It’s necessary, he says, because \u00ab\u00a0kids are already online, and we believe that developing age-appropriate experiences designed specifically for them is far better for parents than where we are today.\u00a0\u00bb But it comes several months after the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) urged Facebook to scrap plans for Instagram for Kids, citing concerns about the safety and well-being of children and the harm social media poses to young people. More recently, Instagram and Facebook have dealt with a damning series of stories from The Wall Street Journal, which paint both companies as unwilling to take any serious steps to stop harmful or misleading content from circulating on their services. Last night, Instagram pushed back on the most recent Journal story, which says Instagram knows its app is toxic for teens, particularly girls. Mosseri did the same this morning; \u00ab\u00a0I don\u2019t agree with how the Journal has reported on our research,\u00a0\u00bb he says. \u00ab\u00a0We do research like this so we can make Instagram better,\u00a0\u00bb Mosseri says. \u00ab\u00a0That means our insights often shed light on problems, but they inspire new ideas and changes to Instagram. Examples include our industry leading anti-bullying work such as Restrict, Hidden Words and Limits, and our recent changes to make Instagram accounts private by default for those under 16.\u00a0\u00bb Up next: Instagram will expand tools that let parents supervise their child\u2019s use of Instagram to teen accounts (those 13 and older). \u00ab\u00a0These new features, which parents and teens can opt into, will give parents the tools to meaningfully shape their teen\u2019s experience. We\u2019ll have more to share on this in the coming months,\u00a0\u00bb Mosseri says. Currently, those under 13 are banned from Instagram (largely to comply with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act), though age-verification features are not particularly robust, making it easy for some pre-teens to create accounts on the app.<\/p>\n