Meta Platforms denied allegations made by U.S. states that it deliberately aimed to make children dependent on its Facebook and Instagram platforms for financial gain as a crucial trial commenced on Tuesday. A bipartisan coalition of 29 U.S. states is taking legal action against Meta, seeking substantial monetary penalties and operational modifications. The lead states, comprising California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey, accused Meta of engineering Facebook and Instagram to engage young users excessively, leading to mental health issues and deceptive safety claims. All 29 states accused Meta of breaching federal laws by inappropriately gathering and utilizing children’s personal data.
The trial taking place in the federal court in Oakland, California, has been labeled as the most significant legal examination of social media’s impact on young users. Meta, along with other social media giants such as Snap, TikTok’s parent company ByteDance, and YouTube’s parent company Alphabet, are facing numerous legal challenges from states, municipalities, school districts, and individuals regarding the potential harm their platforms cause young users.
During the trial’s opening statements, Megan O’Neill, a deputy attorney general for California, asserted that Meta’s core strategy was to engage users, retain their attention, harvest their data, and conceal the truth from the public. O’Neill highlighted that this strategy particularly targeted children, emphasizing Meta’s need for young users while assuring their safety to concerned parties.
Meta’s attorney, Paul Schmidt, acknowledged the challenges some social media users encounter but argued that research did not definitively link adolescents’ social media usage to diminished well-being. He also emphasized that Meta’s co-founder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, shared the company’s commitment to enhancing services rather than endangering users.
The trial’s verdict is anticipated to be an advisory opinion from the jury, which the U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers will consider when determining Meta’s liability. If Meta is found liable, civil penalties and alterations to Facebook and Instagram may be imposed. Meta has disclosed that potential penalties could reach $1.4 trillion US, nearly equivalent to the company’s market value in Menlo Park, California.
Furthermore, the attorneys general suggested that the penalties could amount to around $200 billion US, approximately three years of Meta’s post-tax profits. California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey are advocating for a substantial overhaul of Facebook and Instagram, including eliminating features like likes and infinite scroll, setting time restrictions for younger users, and enforcing measures to prevent children under 13 from accessing the platforms.
Arturo Bejar, a former Meta safety engineer, commenced testifying as the states’ primary witness following the conclusion of opening arguments. Bejar has consistently asserted that Meta was aware of the ineffectiveness of its child safety tools and has testified against the company in multiple trials. The trial is anticipated to last six weeks, with testimonies expected from Zuckerberg and Instagram’s chief, Adam Mosseri.
Critics of Meta voiced their concerns outside the courtroom as the trial unfolded. Mary Rodee, whose 15-year-old son Riley Basford tragically died by suicide in 2021 after encountering a predator on Facebook, condemned the platform’s role in the incident. She criticized the system that prioritizes corporate interests over child safety, highlighting the devastating consequences.
The litigation against Meta was initiated in 2023, following whistleblower Frances Haugen’s revelations to a U.S. Senate committee regarding Meta’s knowledge of the risks its products posed to children. Recent legal actions, such as a Los Angeles jury ordering Meta and Google to compensate a young woman addicted to Instagram and YouTube as a child, have underscored the mounting concerns surrounding social media platforms. Tennessee’s attorney general has also filed a lawsuit against Meta, echoing similar grievances regarding Instagram, with the case currently being litigated in Nashville.
