Meta Faces Legal Firestorm: 40+ States Sue Over Alleged Youth Mental Health Crisis
Over 40 states in the United States are suing Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, alleging that the company has deliberately integrated features on its platforms that addict children and contribute to youth mental health issues. In a lawsuit filed in a federal court in Oakland, California, 33 states, including California and Illinois, claim that Meta has knowingly induced young children and teenagers into compulsive social media use while misleading the public about the dangers of its platforms. Nine attorneys general from different states are also filing their lawsuits, bringing the total number of states taking action to 41, including Washington, D.C.
The lawsuit accuses Meta of engaging in deceptive conduct to maximize its financial gains and alleges that the company has repeatedly concealed the methods and processes through which its platforms manipulate teenagers and children. The states are seeking financial damages, substantial civil penalties, and an end to Meta’s practices that violate the law.
The lawsuit claims that Meta has used powerful and unprecedented technologies to entice and engage youth and teenagers, intentionally designing its platforms to manipulate dopamine responses in young users to maximize their time spent on the platforms. The complaint further states that Meta has profited from children’s suffering by intentionally designing its platforms with manipulative features that create addiction and lower self-esteem.
New York Attorney General Letitia James stated that children and teenagers are experiencing record levels of poor mental health, with social media companies like Meta intentionally designing their platforms with manipulative features that make children addicted to them while harming their self-esteem. California Attorney General Rob Bonta emphasized that Meta has been cultivating addiction among children and teens to boost corporate profits and that the lawsuit aims to draw a line against these practices.
The lawsuit also references research that links young people’s use of Meta’s social media platforms to negative outcomes such as depression, anxiety, insomnia, interference with education, and daily life.
The lawsuit against Meta is the result of an investigation led by a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general from various states. It follows the release of documents in 2021 that revealed Meta’s knowledge of the addictive nature of Instagram and its impact on the body image of some teenage girls. Meta’s own research, as reported by The Wall Street Journal in 2021, highlighted the harm Instagram can cause to teenagers’ mental health and body image issues. Despite this knowledge, the lawsuit claims that Meta continued to encourage teenagers to spend more time on social media, particularly seeking validation through likes on their content.
Meta has responded by stating that it shares the attorneys general’s commitment to providing safe and positive online experiences for teens and has introduced over 30 tools to support teens and their families. The company expressed disappointment that the attorneys general have chosen legal action instead of working collaboratively with the industry to establish clear, age-appropriate standards for apps used by teenagers.
