*A version of this story ran/aired on USA Today *
Graphic, horrifying, violent images from the war in Gaza are racking up hundreds of millions of views across social media channels. This is prompting warnings from parent groups to monitor—and even remove—social media from kids’ devices.
“We are warning parents to disable social media apps such as Instagram, X, and TikTok from their children’s phones,” said Rabbi Daniel Nevins, the head of school at Golda Och Academy in West Orange, N.J., in a letter to community members Tuesday. “Graphic and often misleading information is flowing freely, augmenting the fears of our students.”
Grisly videos are flooding social media sites, from Telegram to TikTok. The sheer amount is overwhelming. It’s terrifying and difficult for most of us to fathom as we stare at our screens from half a world away.
Hamas extremists are behind some of the most disturbing images, including content that’s been edited or manipulated. There are also threats of streaming executions live on popular apps, among other atrocities.
The Islamic State and Al Qaeda used similar tactics in the past, exploiting a lack of content moderation to push a terrorist agenda and spread misinformation. High-profile accounts, including Elon Musk’s own X feed, are among many accused of spreading falsehoods around the conflict.
“X is by far the worst social platform for this kind of stuff right now,” Alex Mahadevan, director of MediaWise at the Poynter Institute, told me. “They have a hollowed-out trust and safety team, verified accounts made from trolls and disinformers who get amplified — it’s essentially a free-for-all.”
Now, imagine being a kid dealing with it all.
KIDS ARE SEARCHING FOR SOME OF THE WORST IMAGES.
Kids are actively looking for information about the conflict. And they are finding some of the most shocking and disturbing images to date.
Apps that monitor youngsters’ activity on YouTube report a recent spike in kids consuming videos with titles like “They shot children, babies, old people” and “Children ‘mercilessly’ killed by Hamas in Israel massacre.”
“I did a quick check-in BrightCanary’s logs from the past few days, and we’ve seen a 1663% increase in searches for Israel, a 1200% increase in searches for war, and a 2800% increase in searches for hostages. This is amongst 9–13-year-olds,” Karl Stillner, the CEO of parental app BrightCanary, wrote via email.
As many of us know from our own childhoods, there’s a bravado that comes from watching “the worst of the worst” gory videos. I remember a group of middle-school friends daring each other to sit through the “Faces of Death,” a grotesque pseudo-documentary.
I still have nightmares about it. And this underscores what we’ve learned in the 40 years since then — consuming carnage-filled content isn’t good for mental health — especially when you’re young.
“Disturbing content has proven to have a large toll on our children’s mental health,” Yaron Litwin, Digital Safety Expert and CMO at parental content filtering app Canopy, told me.
SHOULD I KEEP MY KIDS OFF SOCIAL MEDIA?
Most experts say now is the exact right time for parents to step in and protect kids from harmful content online. Parents should also be discussing world events and answering questions in an age-appropriate way.
“The warning regarding violent social media content highlights the fact that social media is not for kids. Anyone under the age of 13 shouldn’t have a social media account … we will do our kids a huge favor by limiting the chances of them ever seeing it.” Andrea Davis, founder of Better Screen Time, author, and mother of five, told me via email.
“Social media is largely unregulated, and while tech companies are supposed to remove harmful or violent content, it’s impossible to catch it all. Sometimes, the damage is done before the content is removed. Some things can’t be unseen,” she added.
WHAT SHOULD WE DO TO PROTECT OUR KIDS?
This is a critical time for parents to talk with their kids about all kinds of information they might seek out or stumble upon online. It’s also a good time for parents to consider moderating or monitoring social media, online searches, news outlets, and sites such as YouTube.
Of course, you know your child better than anyone else, but the general advice here for kids ages 13 and under, according to Davis, includes:
- Limiting access to devices—use a family device rather than a personal device for elementary and middle school-age kids.
- Using passcodes on devices
- Using screens in shared spaces (not in bedrooms or bathrooms)
For older kids though (14+), it’s best not to ban social media sites altogether or punish kids for their curiosity. But don’t pretend it’s not an issue, especially around more graphic images and fake content.
“Right now is a good opportunity to teach your kids how to navigate the internet safely and responsibly. Instead of removing social media, take some time and explain that engaging with violent content helps the bad guys. It enables evil by rewarding disinformers and bad actors with views and clicks,” Mahadevan said.
“Avoidance has limited longevity with kids. The more you restrict something, the more they want to seek it out and the more channels they have to do so,” Stillner added. He also explained how parental apps like his company’s BrightCanary now use AI to flag concerning content, helping parents navigate a sensitive subject without kids fearing they’ll get their device taken away. “Get ahead of the violent videos and misinformation they may see online. Kids shouldn’t have to navigate the Internet on their own. It’s a complicated and messy place.”
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
I found a great deal of helpful information researching this topic for this story. Here are several additional resources:
- How to avoid misinformation about the war in Gaza: Mahadevan highlights ways to spot fake news and manipulated videos.
- Filter content and keep videos from auto-playing across social media apps that allow you to turn that feature off (not all of them do). Click on each site to go to its how-to page on this topic.
- Andrea Davis’ book Creating a Tech-Healthy Family is full of practical suggestions as well.
- Talking to your kids about Tech is one of the best ways to instill healthy tech habits in them. Take a look at our article, The Tech Talk for useful tips on how to broach digital safety with them.