How much money did social media make off kids last year?
A Harvard public health study has found that social media companies made $11 billion in U.S. ad revenue from minors last year.
To figure the billions earned from kids, Harvard built a simulation based on the estimated number of minors on Facebook, X, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube, stats from research marketing firm E-Marketer, numbers from a parental control app and the average amount of time minors spend on social media.
Researchers stress the need for government regulation of social media since companies making big bucks from kids have failed to self-regulate, targeting minors with ads and content that has worsened a youth mental health crisis.