TL;DR: Meta whistleblower Sarah Wynn-Williams revealed to US senators that Meta targeted teens aged 13 to 17 with ads based on their emotional states, such as feeling depressed or worthless. This practice involved using data from teens' online activities to inform advertisers, who then targeted these vulnerable moments to promote products.
The former director of Global Public Policy for Facebook has told US senators that Meta actively targets teens with advertisements based on their emotional state, with data acquired through their online activity.
Meta whistleblower Sarah Wynn-Williams spoke to senators on Wednesday and said during her time at the company, Meta actively targeted teens with advertisements when they were feeling down or depressed. The claim, which was first made during Wynn-Williams' book "Careless People," documents the time she spent at Facebook and the lack of concern top executives at the company had for children using its platform.
More specifically, Wynn-Williams said Meta, then known as Facebook, targeted teens between the ages of 13 and 17 with advertisements when they were feeling "worthless or helpless".
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The crux of the issue can be traced back to Meta's algorithm that gathers data on its users, with Wynn-Williams claiming Meta would share information about its teen users' feelings of depression with advertisers, who would then use that negative mindspace to pitch a product. Additionally, Wynn-Williams said Meta was informing advertisers when...
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