Verdict: Social Media Giants Deliberately Harm Children
This last week, two juries reached the same conclusion in less than 24 hours: Meta and Google built products designed to addict children, and they knew it. These two cases may prove to be some of the most consequential legal bellwethers of the decade.
On Tuesday, March 24, a New Mexico jury found Meta (Facebook/Instagram) liable for failing to protect children from sexual predators and ordered the company to pay $375 million in damages.
The next day, a Los Angeles jury found Meta and YouTube liable for causing depression and anxiety in a young woman who started using their platforms as a child. They awarded her $6 million. $3 million of the verdict was punitive damages.
Internal documents shown in court revealed what parents and educators have suspected for years: these companies prioritized profits over kids' safety. Meta allowed "beauty filters" despite warnings from 18 experts that they could harm teen girls. YouTube's algorithms connected users with content designed to keep them scrolling, regardless of age. "Facebook, Twitter and other companies use methods similar to the gambling industry to keep users on their sites," said Natasha Schüll, a cultural anthropologist at NYU.
The social media giants knew these cases were critical. Some are calling it a "big tobacco moment," referencing the landmark litigation from the 1990s that reshaped the laws around tobacco use and children. Mark Zuckerberg testified in person and when asked why Meta lifted a temporary ban on those harmful beauty filters, he said: "I felt like the evidence wasn't clear enough to support limiting people's expression."
The jury disagreed. Thousands of parents across the country and the world disagree.
As parents limiting screen time can be a struggle, but if anything, this week validated that the struggle is worth it. Taking the step to switch off the screen and step outside has become more important by the day.
Research shows that kids who spend regular time outdoors have better attention spans, lower rates of anxiety and depression, and stronger problem-solving skills—the exact opposites of what social media produces. Despite the proof, American children spend an average of seven hours a day on screens and less than one hour outside. These verdicts are a wake-up call to reverse that ratio.
