The Heat is On is an investigative series by Scrolling 2 Death, in partnership with Heat Initiative. Sarah Gardner, Founder and CEO of Heat Initiative, joins Nicki (S2D) to expose the truth Big Tech doesn’t want you to hear – and this episode is about Meta.

Meta’s roots reveal a troubling origin story—from Facemash, where students were rated based on their appearance, to becoming one of the most powerful (and dangerous) tech companies in the world, with over 3.3 billion daily users. Behind the sleek apps and promise for connection lies a history of harmful design choices that target young users—fueling anxiety, depression, eating disorders, self-harm, and even suicide.

In this episode, you’ll hear from former Meta executives and whistleblowers, cybercrime experts, and child-safety researchers who prove that the company knew how harmful its platforms were to kids—and did almost nothing to stop it.

Today, over 40 U.S. states, thousands of school districts, and countless families have taken legal action. And yet, Meta continues to push untested, potentially dangerous features—like their new AI chatbot—on teens without parental consent. Jonathan Haidt, author of The Anxious Generation, weighs in to warn how these harms are reaching an industrial scale and legal action alone is not enough. We all need to work together to hold Big Tech accountable.

It’s time to turn up the heat: Join our email list. Share this episode. Keep your kids off Meta platforms.

Whether you're a parent, caregiver, educator, or simply someone who cares about the well-being of kids, this episode will give you the facts, the tools, and the fire to demand change.

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Hosts:

Nicki Petrossi – Host of Scrolling 2 Death

Sarah Gardner – Founder & CEO of Heat Initiative

Expert Guests:

Kelly Stonelake - Former Meta executive and whistleblower

Arturo Bejar - Former Meta executive and whistleblower

Paul Raffile - Cyber analyst and sextortion expert

Jonathan Haidt - Author of The Anxious Generation

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Resources mentioned in the episode:

• Instagram Teens research by Parents Together
• NY Times: The Men Who Use Instagram to Groom Child Influencers by Michael Keller

Expert editing provided by Jacob Meade.