The popular SnapChat app is under attack by Instagram influencer Collin Kartchner for what he says are deceptive practices that provide teens with easy access to pornography, and he’s desingating June 1 as #DeleteSnapchat Day.
”Enough is enough,” says Kartchner. “This app is a disaster. Time to say goodbye, Snapchat. You used to be fun, but now you are horrible. We as parents are taking a stand to get our kids off this app. Let’s all do it together.”
Kartchner has spent considerable time talking to teens and researching the effects of social media, in particular, Snapchat, and the effects it has on children’s self-esteem, and self-worth.
”I’m constantly talking to kids about Snapchat and hearing from them how this is sucking their life and their self-esteem away.”
At the center of the controversy is the recent launch of Snapchat’s “Cosmo After Dark” that provides subscribers free access to porn every Friday at 6 pm.
”SnapChat is an app that was created for one reason, and that is to send naked photos to one another,” said Kartchner. “They put a cutesy filter on them to make it feel like’s a family friendly app, but let’s not forget why it was made in the first place.”
Due to the backlash, Snapchat decided to end Cosmo.
”We strive to be a responsible source of news, entertainment, and information for our community, and understand the legitimate concerns parents have about what content their children consume,” said Rachel Racusen, Snap’s director communications, in a recent statement. “From the start, Cosmo’s After Dark edition was age gated from Snapchatters under 18 and only intended for adults. Cosmo has decided to discontinue publishing any future versions of Cosmo After Dark on Snapchat, and we appreciate all the feedback we have head from parents and members of our community about this content.”
Bray Hallman encourages teens to delete Snapchat.
A video made by Bray Hallman, from Draper, UT continues to gain traction.
In the video, accompanied by his younger brother, he promotes #DeleteSnapchat Day and is open about his struggles with pornography. Hallman says “pornography is a type of drug than can consume and ruin people’s lives.”
Says Kartchner: “Even the local junior high where my oldest will go next year had a story done there where an eighth grade teacher asked 90 students to fill in the blank ‘one thing my parents don’t know about social media is_____’ And the answers were horrifying. Almost all of them said that at least once or twice a week they see nude photos they’re asked to send nude photos whether they want to see them or not their shared amongst classmates all on Snapchat.”
For parents who are wondering how to delete their children’s Snapchat account, here’s how.
How to delete your Snapchat account:
- First of all, you need to go to the below-given link from any web browser. You can’t delete the account from the app itself. You have to go online at https://support.snapchat.com/delete-account
- The page will redirect (so give it a couple of seconds) and then enter the username and password to log into your Snapchat account.
- The Delete Account page will pop up and you’ll be asked again to enter your username and password
- Accounts take 30 days to delete.
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