New Gossip App 'Fizz' Leads to Widespread High School Bullying, Raises Concerns About Teen Anxiety, AI-Generated Content: Report

The launch of a new gossip application, Sparkleat a Vermont high school, led to widespread bullying and controversy, reigniting concerns about the impact of social media on adolescent mental health.

What happened: The app, created by two Stanford University students, was intended to provide a safe, anonymous space for students to connect. However, it quickly turned into a platform for cyberbullying, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The high school principal described the situation as the most disruptive in his nine years at the school.

Posts on the app included speculation about students' sexual orientation, mockery of their appearance and disabilities, and accusations about teacher-student relationships. The app's upvoting system often pushed the most harmful posts to the top, creating an environment of fear and distrust among students.

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Despite the app's community guidelines, which prohibit harassment and hate speech, the situation quickly spiraled out of control, leading to tears and distress among students.

Fizz App did not immediately respond to Benzinga's request for comment.

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While the app's creators aimed to provide a more authentic and vulnerable social media experience, the app has been criticized for its lack of effective content moderation.

Why is this important: The rapid descent of the Fizz app into a cyberbullying platform is the latest in a series of incidents involving AI and social media platforms.

In 2023, AI was used to generate and share fake nude images of female students at a New Jersey high school, causing widespread outrage.

This incident and others, such as the creation of deepfake images targeting underage girls in a Spanish city, have raised concerns about the risk of AI being misused for harmful purposes.

These incidents have also highlighted the need for more effective content moderation on social media platforms. In response to the increase in fake AI-generated content, Google has developed a tool to spot AI-generated photos with high accuracy, in an effort to prevent the spread of fake images online.

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga Publishers.

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