Today is Sunday, Aug. 23, the 235th day of 2026. There are 130 days left in the year. Today in history: On Aug. 23, 2003, former priest John Geoghan (GAY’-gun), the convicted child molester whose prosecution sparked the sex abuse scandal that shook the Roman Catholic Church nationwide, died after another inmate attacked him in...Read More
Key insights Is social media use reasonably safe for children and adolescents? We call this the “product safety question”, and we present seven lines of evidence showing that the answer is no. The evidence of harm is found in: 1) surveys of young people; 2) surveys of parents, teachers, and clinicians; 3) contents from corporate...Read More
Follow our live coverage here. SINGAPORE – Social media platforms that fail to keep teenagers safe from features that fuel addiction may be required to raise their minimum age beyond the current industry standard of 13. This is part of the Government’s priority to make social media safer by design, which includes cracking down on...Read More
Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter Georgia’s GOP leadership says fighting against cyberbullying will be a top priority when the Legislature convenes in January. Sen. Jason Anavitarte, a Dallas Republican, said he plans to file a bill to tackle the issue, but he said the specifics...Read More
Updated Aug. 23, 2026, 7:55 a.m. ET Who’s to blame? The teens with their eyes on the phone screen all day, or the people who make the stuff they’re watching? That’s the big question in a high-profile federal lawsuit against Meta, which got underway last week in California and is expected to go for many...Read More
North Carolina education and public safety leaders are increasingly taking steps to improve school safety — an issue that’s top of mind for families and students, too, who’d rather focus on learning in school than on well-being. WRAL News found generally declining rates of criminal offenses reported in schools for the past two decades, with...Read More
TikTok and parent company ByteDance have agreed to pay US$400 million ($559 million) to settle a lawsuit with the US Department of Justice over claims that the video-sharing platform violated federal children’s privacy laws. “Under the settlement, TikTok will pay $300 million immediately and an additional $100 million upon entry of an order vacating a...Read More
“Sexting” — specifically, sending sexually explicit photos — among teens may also be an indicator that they are more likely to engage in the real thing later “Sexting” — specifically, sending sexually explicit photos — among teens may also be an indicator that they are more likely to engage in the real thing later, according...Read More
Which types of social media use are most linked to anxiety or depression in teens and young adults? In our research, we reviewed more than 80 studies and identified a few social media behaviors that consistently pose higher risk. The strongest evidence points to social comparison; for example, passively scrolling, liking others’ posts, obsessing over...Read More
In recent years, the dark side of the internet has become increasingly apparent, with online violence against women and girls emerging as a significant problem. Heartbreaking cases like that of 26-year-old Athira from Kerala, who took her own life following persistent cyber-violence, underscore the gravity of this issue. Girls as young as 12 in Spain,...Read More
