Hawley demands Zuckerberg answer for 'horrifying' report about Instagram and underage drug use

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Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., sent a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg Wednesday, demanding answers regarding a recent report that found Instagram allows underage users to search for illicit drugs and that its algorithms help connect them with drug dealers.

According to an investigation by Tech Transparency Project (TTP), which created several Instagram accounts for hypothetical minors between the ages of 13 and 17, the photo-sharing platform owned by Meta allowed them to reach an account selling drugs like Xanax within two clicks. The report contrasted this with the five clicks it took to exit the app.

The report also explained how the app's automatic features not only failed to prevent the minors from searching for drug-selling accounts but even accelerated the process. This comes despite the company's community guidelines, which prohibit buying or selling nonmedical or pharmaceutical drugs.

"The findings of the report are horrifying, especially as our nation confronts a drug overdose epidemic of historic proportions and an alarming deterioration of teenagers’ mental health precipitated by the coronavirus pandemic and misguided mitigation measures to it," wrote Hawley, who went on to cite 100,000 overdose deaths between May 2020 and April 2021.

"It is unconscionable that any company would aid and abet this epidemic of death and despair. Unfortunately, given Instagram’s blatant disregard for the mental health of its young users, the findings from TPP’s investigation are not shocking," he continued.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has found himself caught up in a variety of controversies in recent weeks.  (Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP via Getty Images)

Hawley asked Zuckerberg to explain what steps Instagram has taken to enforce its community guidelines against the sale of illicit and prescription drugs and also requested specifics regarding the protocols Instagram has for removing such accounts. Hawley also inquired whether Instagram partners with law enforcement against such practices.

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Hawley asked Zuckerberg to respond to his questions by Jan. 31. Meta did not respond to Fox News' request for comment in time for publication.

Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., speaks during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to examine Texas's abortion law on Capitol Hill Sept. 29, 2021, in Washington, D.C. (Tom Williams-Pool/Getty Images)

Following reports on the negative effect Instagram has on the mental health of young people, Hawley introduced legislation in September to hold social media companies liable for the harm their products cause children.

About four in 10 Americans use Instagram compared to about seven in 10 Americans who use Facebook, according to a Pew Research survey published last April. Among young adult users between the ages of 18 and 29, the majority (81%) say they use Instagram. 

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More than 40% of the app's users are under 22 years old, and about 22 million teens use the app every day, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal that cited Facebook's documents.

Fox News' Audrey Conklin contributed to this report.