Facebook whistleblower to reveal company’s ‘complete disregard’ for youth safety during bombshell Senate testimony as teen mental health crisis escalates: Big Tech lobbyists are working TANK online safety legislation allege Democrats AND Republicans

• Meta is accused of ignoring information that would protect teens
•  It is a rare issue that is unifying Republicans and Democrats
• According to excerpts of Sen. Marsha Blackburn’s opening remarks obtained by DailyMail.com, the senator plans to dissect his experiences working at Meta 

A top Big Tech whistleblower is expected to drag Facebook for company policies that are perpetuating the teen mental health crisis during a Senate hearing Tuesday.

Facebook, which recently rebranded to ‘Meta,’ is accused by a former compliance official Arturo Bejar of ignoring information that would protect teens and rolling back safety protocols to protect its bottom line.

And it is a rare issue that is unifying Republicans and Democrats. 

GOP Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., met with Bejar last week and said he presented new evidence to back up claims that Meta executives ‘knowingly’ turned a blind eye to the ‘horrific harms to young people on the company’s platforms.’

From Bejar’s disclosures, the senators said they uncovered information revealing the executives were ‘personally warned’ that millions of American teens opened their apps immediately to eating disorder, drug and sex content. 

Mark Zuckerberg ‘s corporation is accused of ‘profoundly altered the psychological and social realities of a generation of young Americans’ by ‘ensnaring’ them in addictive cycles

Facebook, which recently rebranded to ‘ Meta ,’ is accused by a former compliance official Arturo Bejar of ignoring information that would protect teens

‘Arturo’s first-hand knowledge and damning evidence prove that Meta has put profits ahead of the safety and wellbeing of millions of teenagers, with a deadly toll on young people and families,’ Blumenthal and Blackburn wrote in a joint statement.

Bejar is set to appear before a Senate Judiciary Committee subcommittee Tuesday at 10 a.m. ET. 

According to excerpts of Blackburn’s opening remarks obtained first by DailyMail.com, the senator plans to dissect his experiences working at Meta during the panel.

‘Unfortunately, while I am troubled by the information you shared about Meta’s complete disregard for youth safety on its platform, I am in no way surprised,’ she will say during the hearing Tuesday. 

‘Senator Blumenthal and I have spent the past several years fighting against Big Tech lobbyists’ efforts to derail the passage of our Kids Online Safety Act, despite all the evidence that the protections it provides are long overdue,’ she will continue.

‘I’m sure you have seen firsthand how Big Tech will fight tooth and nail to prevent Congress from regulating them.’

The Kids Online Safety Act was first introduced in 2022, but has not moved out of committee and to the floor.

Critics of the legislation say it will harm free speech and protection of privacy.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) teens who have contemplated suicide have increased 60 percent compared to 10 years ago.

And suicide is the second leading cause of death among Americans aged 15 to 19, according to the CDC.

Last month, 41 state attorneys general sued Meta for ‘psychologically manipulative product features’ that negatively impacted the mental health of younger Americans. 

The bombshell lawsuit alleges that Mark Zuckerberg’s corporation has ‘profoundly altered the psychological and social realities of a generation of young Americans’ by ‘ensnaring’ them in addictive cycles through its targeted algorithms.

GOP Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., met with Bejar last week

The case claims Meta is breaking consumer protection statutes and common law through ‘unfair’ and ‘deceptive’ practices. It seeks a variety of remedies against the social media giant, including large civil penalties. Meta has refuted the claims 

Thirty-three US states are suing Meta Platforms and its Instagram unit, accusing them of intentionally jeopardizing the mental health of children and teenagers for profit

Filed in a California federal court, the complaint says that Meta, which also operates Facebook, has repeatedly misled the public about the substantial dangers of its platforms and contributed to a youth mental health crisis.

The case claims Meta is breaking consumer protection statutes and common law through ‘unfair’ and ‘deceptive’ practices. It seeks a variety of remedies against the social media giant, including large civil penalties.

Meta has refuted the claims, saying it is ‘disappointed’ that attorneys general have resorted to legal action ‘instead of working productively with companies across the industry to create clear, age-appropriate standards for the many apps teens use.’

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