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The Purple Zone
Hosted by Alexis Morgan, The Purple Zone explores how governance, public institutions, community, and history shape the places we call home.
Through conversations, storytelling, and policy analysis, the podcast connects local experiences to larger civic and political currents--from education, healthcare, and governance to culture, identity, and institutional change.
Rooted in Idaho but reaching far beyond it, The Purple Zone is less about hot takes and more about understanding how communities evolve, how decisions shape everyday life, and what it means to participate in civic life together.
Alexis Morgan is a PhD candidate in public policy and administration, longtime community participant, advocate, and civic storyteller.
The Purple Zone
When Meta Meets PTA: Partnerships, Policies, & Student Safety
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Meta—the company behind Instagram and Facebook—is under fire for the harm its platforms cause kids. But instead of fixing the problem, Meta has launched a sophisticated campaign to protect its image and slow down regulation.
In this episode of The Purple Zone, Alexis unpacks:
- How Meta funds parent and child safety groups—including the National PTA—to build trust with families.
- Why National PTA has recently come under fire in outside reporting, and what’s fact vs. assumption. I share my own perspective as a past state PTA president—what’s true, what’s been asked, and what’s at stake.
- The rollout of Meta’s Instagram School Partnership Program, which offers schools “better customer service” only if they partner with the company.
- The role of the Tech Transparency Project, a nonprofit watchdog exposing how companies like Meta shape public perception, policy, and research.
- Check out the "Inside Meta's Spine Machine on Kids & Social Media" https://www.techtransparencyproject.org/articles/inside-metas-spin-machine-on-kids-and-social-media
- My personal experience at the Idaho Capitol in 2024, where Big Tech lobbyists helped defeat a bill designed to protect kids online.
- How Idaho school districts are adopting bell-to-bell no cell phone policies, and what that reveals about local efforts to protect student well-being.
👉 The big questions:
- Does taking Big Tech money amount to endorsement?
- Should schools partner with Instagram to fix harms Instagram itself created?
- Who should decide what’s best for kids: corporations or parents/communities/lawmakers?
Because in the end, this is bigger than social media. It’s about transparency, accountability, and whether we let Big Tech write the rules for our children’s future.
**I mention some accounts to follow. One is Protect Young Eyes, by Chris McKenna (I say his last name is Young, I spoke incorrectly).
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Send Alexis an email with guest requests, ideas, or potential collaboration.
email@thealexismorgan.com
Find great resources, info on school communities, and other current projects regarding public policy:
https://www.thealexismorgan.com