Don’t Underestimate the Anti-Smartphone Warriors

Something sounded off about Mark Zuckerberg’s impromptu apology (non-apology) at a US Senate hearing earlier this month to parents whose kids had been harmed by social media. It wasn’t just his expression of regret “for everything you’ve all gone through,” rather than Facebook’s behavior. It was his weak defense at the end. “This is why we invested so much and are going to continue doing industry-leading efforts to make sure no one has to go through the things your families had to suffer,” he said.

Zuckerberg knows full well that in the absence of serious regulation, his investments in safety have always played second fiddle to growth. In that sense, social media firms can’t be expected to police themselves, but there’s hope that in the meantime, a flurry of new laws and plucky grassroots movements are steering things in a more promising direction.