Head of Instagram Testifies Before Senate Subcommittee

The head of Instagram, Adam Mosseri, testified before the Senate subcommittee yesterday as lawmakers question the app’s impact on the mental health of younger adults. During the hearing Mosseri said the platform is planning to bring back a version of its news feed which gives users the option to sort media chronologically rather than ranked accordingly to the platform’s algorithm. The company had been working on the feature for months and plans to roll it out early next year according to Mosseri. He also acknowledged the need for updated regulations and more parental and user tools. He said “specifically, we believe there should be an industry body that will determine best practices for social media companies to verify user ages, cater to different age groups and provide parental controls” and added the body should “receive input from civil society, from parents, and from regulators.”