Facebook’s parent company Meta would be sued for threatening the mental health of US teens. A US judge has rejected the company’s plea to dismiss the lawsuits and claims therein.
Meta will face legal action for deteriorating mental health of US teens?
A federal judge in California has ruled that Meta must face lawsuits by U.S. states. Multiple lawsuits have alleged that Meta is fueling mental health problems among teens.
Specifically speaking, Oakland-based U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers has rejected Meta’s appeal to toss the claims made by the states in two separate lawsuits filed last year.
One of the lawsuits involves 30 states, and the other was filed by the state of Florida. By dismissing Meta’s pleas, the US judge has essentially cleared the way for states and other plaintiffs to seek more evidence.
Meta may have to go to trial. However, the latest development is in no way the final ruling. In other words, the US judge may have kickstarted a lengthy court trial involving Meta for allegedly threatening or deteriorating the mental health of US teens.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement that, “Meta needs to be held accountable for the very real harm it has inflicted on children here in California and across the country.”
Meta refutes allegations claiming it has safeguards in place
As expected, Meta has refuted the allegations. While disagreeing with the ruling, a Meta spokesperson stated the company has, “developed numerous tools to support parents and teens.”
Interestingly, Meta isn’t the only tech giant that may have to face a trial over social media addiction among US teens. The US judge has reportedly rejected similar motions by Meta, ByteDance’s TikTok, Google parent Alphabet’s YouTube, and Snap’s Snapchat.
All of the abovementioned companies sought to dismiss related personal injury lawsuits by individual plaintiffs. However, none of them are defendants in the states’ lawsuits that involve Meta.
There’s little doubt that social media addiction is a threatening mental condition, especially for teens and young adults. Numerous studies have indicated that such platforms lead to anxiety, depression, and body image issues. At the very least, lawsuits against Meta could lead to better mechanisms and stronger enforcement of policies designed to protect teens online.