I saw a good article on CNN about New Mexico’s Attorney General, Mr. Raul Torrez. In addition to prosecuting child abusers, he is paying attention to entities in social media that may facilitate dangerous persons’ access to children. He has sued Meta (Facebook, Instagram) for, the article reports, “creating a ‘breeding ground’ for child predators and exposing young users to sexually explicit material.” I hope he succeeds.

Though denunciations like this of social media have become routine, one rarely sees much concern about parents’ supervision of children who are allowed to go online and have access to social media. I think the cellphone, the internet, and social media have become babysitters by default in the way that television used to be. 

Of course, it is true that there are various apps that are claimed to inhibit young peoples’ access to dangerous stuff on the internet. But kids are far more resourceful than their elders at finding their way to what they want on the internet. Parents who worry over harmless books in school libraries might better spend their time worrying about harmful images and interactions in their own homes.