The aftermath of the case could influence thousands of comparable cases against the tech behemoth companies brought by parents, attorneys general and school districts.
By Catholics for Catholics
Social media giants Google and Meta were dealt a harsh blow on Wednesday in a landmark case that accuses them of hooking teens into being addicted to their sites.
A Los Angeles jury found Alphabet’s Google and Meta liable on Wednesday in a landmark social media addiction lawsuit, according to a story by Newsmax.
The aftermath of the case could influence thousands of comparable cases against the heavyweight companies brought by parents, attorneys general and school districts. According to a study by the Pew Research Center, at least half of American teens use YouTube or Instagram daily.
The case which took place in Los Angeles has to do with a 20-year-old woman who said she became addicted to the apps at a young age because of their attention-grabbing design.
During the trial, the plaintiffs focused on platform design rather than content, making it harder for the companies to avoid liability. Settling before the trial were Snap and TikTok, who were also defendants; the terms of the agreements were not revealed.
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, a non-partisan organization, at least 20 states enacted laws last year on social media usage and children.
The legislation includes bills that regulate the use of cellphones in schools and require users to verify their ages to open a social media account. NetChoice, a trade association backed by tech companies such as Meta and Google, is seeking to invalidate age verification requirements in court.
Social media and technology goliaths in the U.S. have encountered escalating criticism in the last decade over child and teen safety. The dispute has now shifted to courts and state governments.
Still, Congress has refused to pass comprehensive legislation regulating social media.
Another social media addiction case brought by several states and school districts against technology companies is expected to go to trial this summer in federal court in Oakland, California.
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