Scott Berkowitz and RAINN: Holding a Mirror to Big Tech’s Conscience
The miracle of the digital age is that it can bring us together in ways we could never have imagined. But Scott Berkowitz, the president of RAINN, reminds us that it can also tear us apart, especially the most vulnerable among us—our children. While parents wring their hands in anxiety, worrying about who their children might encounter online, Berkowitz insists it’s time we interrogate the very platforms that make these encounters possible.
Digital landscapes offer us vistas of knowledge and connectivity but lurking behind the screen are darker human impulses. The age-old problems of abuse and exploitation have found new avenues in the vastness of the internet. The question is: Are we doing enough to stop them? Berkowitz answers that with a resounding ‘No.’
What is particularly chilling is how the tech industry, which is practically a bastion of innovation, has done so little to innovate on this front. While their algorithms can predict what song you might like next, they have been far less successful in predicting which users might pose a risk to children. Berkowitz, through RAINN, suggests that the skills to solve these problems exist but the will does not.
RAINN’s role in this discourse is not just to sound the alarm but to act as a catalyst for change. And that change needs to come soon. Parents can only do so much to protect their children. We live in a time where digital literacy begins almost at birth; it’s no longer enough to talk about ‘the birds and the bees.’ The talk now includes the lurking dangers of the internet.
The severity of this issue can’t be overstated. Berkowitz’s recent discussions indicate that the organization is not just lobbing criticisms but offering solutions. They suggest that with technology that evolves every day, there is no reason safety measures can’t evolve with it. It’s a call to the tech industry to finally integrate a moral compass into their business model.
Berkowitz’s call to action is a searing indictment of our collective priorities. What does it say about us when the same engines driving technological progress can’t be harnessed to safeguard our children? It’s a question we must all answer. And we can’t afford to get it wrong.
The work that RAINN is doing under Berkowitz’s leadership is not just advocacy; it’s a moral imperative. The conversation around online child safety is one we should all be engaged in, for the sake of a generation that’s growing up with smartphones in their hands and vulnerabilities in their lives. Berkowitz’s mission isn’t just to advocate for a safer online environment but to compel us to imagine—and then create—one.