Meta Faces Landmark Federal Trial Over Youth Social Media Addiction

The trial, set to begin Tuesday in federal court in Oakland, California, consolidates roughly 3,300 lawsuits from school districts, individuals, and state attorneys general into a single multidistrict litigation before U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers. The plaintiffs seek up to $1.4 trillion in penalties and product changes, alleging Meta violated consumer protection laws and the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act by allowing children under 13 to use Facebook and Instagram and collecting their data without parental consent.

State attorneys general from California, Colorado, Kentucky, New Jersey, and others argue that Meta designed features like the 'like' button, infinite scrolling, and recommendation algorithms to keep young users hooked, prioritizing engagement and ad revenue over children's safety. They claim these features disrupt sleep and education, and that visual filters promote eating disorders and body dysmorphia. New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport said in an interview, 'We allege in our complaint, and what we're prepared to prove at trial, is that they're deceiving consumers about Facebook and Instagram's dangers. They're putting the profits over the health of a generation of young people.'

Meta has denied the allegations, with a spokesperson stating, 'The AGs offer no proof anyone in their states was misled, claim benign features like having an additional Instagram account somehow harmed their residents, and attempt to penalize Meta for industry-wide challenges like age verification. We stand by our record of creating strong protections for teens and look forward to making our case in court.'

The trial follows a recent U.S. appeals court ruling that allowed thousands of similar lawsuits against Meta, Google, TikTok, and Snapchat to proceed, rejecting arguments that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act shields platforms from liability for user content. Plaintiffs' attorneys Lexi Hazam and Previn Warren said, 'A trial is how the public finds out what Meta knew about its products' impact on children, when it knew it, and what it chose to do with that knowledge. Meta has fought to keep that evidence from the public.'

This case comes after a New Mexico court ordered Meta to pay $942 million in penalties and changes to address teen mental health harms, a ruling Meta has said it will appeal. The company also faces a separate trial in California over similar claims brought by school districts and individuals, which could set a precedent for how social media companies are held accountable for youth addiction.