The Facebook Files by The Wall Street Journal

Through an extensive review of internal Facebook documents, the Wall Street Journal has uncovered a multitude of online harms that the Facebook platform causes. Cited messages of Facebook employees make it clear that the company is aware of the harm its platform is causing, but chooses not to act despite its public pledges, the political pressure it receives, and the numerous media exposés.

The 17 files put together by the Wall Street Journal show the concerning impact of Facebook’s platform, particularly regarding children.

In a presentation titled ‘Tweens Competitive Audit’, a slide was titled “Why do we care about tweens”, answering “They are a valuable but untapped audience”. Facebook has sought to target “tweens” investing in designing products that appeal to children aged 10 to 12, despite prohibiting children under the age of 13 from using the account. 

In addition, one file delves into Facebook’s awareness of the toxic experience of Instagram, felt particularly by teenage girls. In their internal research, Facebook uncovered that of all social media platforms tested, “Social comparison is worse on Instagram” with teenage girls suffering the most around body image comparisons. 

“Thirty-two percent of teen girls said that when they felt bad about their bodies, Instagram made them feel worse,”

Facebook researcher on an internal message board, March 2020,

Despite being highly aware of these online harms, and the significant impact they are having on children and young people, Facebook continues to publicly downplay these harms and fail to act.