Social Media's Attention Economy: Protecting Kids

0:00It's April 1st, this is Vancouver News today, driven by AI. Back in 1971, Economist Herbert Simon dropped the concept of the Attention Economy, where info overload makes our focus the real. Goldmine Fast forward to today, social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok dominate that game, using addictive designs and hyper-personalized ads to hook. Users, especially young people whose brains are still wiring up, recent US court went to spy-light the damage. A 20-year-old won $6 million from YouTube and Instagram after their features led to her addiction, depression, and suicidal thoughts. Meanwhile, MediGuy hit with a $375 million penalty for hurting kids' mental health and hiding child exploitation risks on its apps. Canadians are fired up about this. Three-quarters of folks and 70% of parents backburning social media for under 16s per a fresh Angus Reed poll. Groups like Unplugged Canada push for stronger privacy laws, no data sales on kids, and limits

1:03on ad targeting that prey on insecurities. Experts say the combo of real-time tailoring and endless scrolls turns users into puppets for profit. Recent probes found TikTok scooping kid data despite under 13 rules, and advocates want age gates that algorithms can enforce using behavioral. Incluses. As calls grow for federal action here, from Saskatchewan to Ottawa, the fight boils down to protecting developing minds from manipulative feeds, paving, the way for smarter digital rules ahead.