CEOs grilled over failure to halt child exploitation: Accusations and urgent calls for accountability

Mark Zuckerberg faced a heated Senate hearing on online child exploitation, with lawmakers accusing him of having "blood on his hands" and condemning the surge in "financial sextortion" of minors on social media. The Senate Judiciary Committee, in a rare bipartisan effort, supported bills targeting abuse on online platforms and criticized executives for their inaction.

Sen. Lindsey Graham asserted, "Mr. Zuckerberg, you and the companies before us, I know you don't mean for it to be so, but you have blood on your hands." The committee's chairman, Sen. Dick Durbin, labeled the situation a "crisis in America," emphasizing instances of "financial sextortion" affecting children.

The hearing witnessed bipartisan frustration over tech CEOs' perceived lack of action, with Sen. Ted Cruz rebuking Zuckerberg for Instagram's warning screens allowing access to explicit content involving child sex abuse. Sen. Graham called for the repeal of Section 230 to hold social media firms legally accountable.

CEOs from TikTok, Snap, X, and Discord were grilled, with parents displaying photos of victims. Snap CEO Evan Spiegel, Discord CEO Jason Citron, and X CEO Linda Yaccarino faced subpoenas, while Zuckerberg and Chew appeared voluntarily.

Zuckerberg highlighted Meta's safety efforts, emphasizing over $20 billion spent since 2016. The hearing included a reel of victims sharing tragic experiences, prompting Sen. Graham to question Zuckerberg on the suicide of Rep. Brandon Guffey's son due to Instagram-related sexual extortion.

Chew defended TikTok's safety measures, citing over $2 billion spent and 40,000 employees dedicated to "trust and safety efforts." X's Yaccarino endorsed the STOP CSAM Act, enabling online child sex abuse victims to sue social media platforms and app stores.