Pinterest CEO calls on governments to ban social media for users under 16 | TechCrunch

Last day to exhibit your breakthrough to 10,000+ tech leaders at Disrupt is on Oct 2. Book Exhibit Table Now. Disrupt doors open Oct. 13. Get your pass and bring someone with you at 50% off. REGISTER NOW. Pinterest’s CEO, Bill Ready, has called for governments to ban social media for users under 16 in a new Time op-ed. He’s now one of the few top CEOs to call for such a restriction, as nations worldwide begin to implement or consider ways to limit children’s online time, and exactly how to verify ages. Ready wrote that children today were “living through the largest social experiment in history,” as they have been given “unfiltered access to social media platforms.” Research shows the damage this unfiltered access has done, with today’s youth seeing increased rates of depression, anxiety, and lower concentration skills. He said social media platforms gave “insufficient forethought about the consequences” of what they could do to children, and praised Australia’s social media ban for children, saying that “if tech companies fail to prioritize youth safety, other governments should follow Australia’s lead.” He pointed out the restrictions and guidelines industries like tobacco and al