Juries in California and New Mexico dealt Meta two costly legal defeats, reflecting Americans’ mounting frustration with social media companies’ unwillingness to protect children on their platforms.
KGM v. Meta
A Los Angeles jury found Meta and YouTube’s addictive social media platforms caused a young woman to experience sextortion, depression, anxiety and body image issues in KGM v. Meta today.
Until now, companies like Meta have blamed harms associated with social media on harmful content, rather than the design of social media platforms themselves. Under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, social media companies cannot be held liable for the content people post on their sites.
Now they can be held liable for designing addictive products.
“[This] landmark verdict isn’t just a financial win for the plaintiff,” says President and CEO of Focus on the Family Jim Daly. “It’s an acknowledgment that Big Tech cannot willfully, recklessly and irresponsibly poison young hearts and minds in order to generate a profit.”
Meta and YouTube must pay the plaintiff and her family $2.1 and $0.9 million in damages, respectively, with additional punitive fines to follow.
A spokesperson for YouTube says it plans to appeal the ruling. A spokesperson for Meta says the company is reviewing its legal options.
New Mexico v. Meta
March 24th, a New Mexico jury found Meta violated state consumer protection laws by endangering children and “misleading consumers” about the safety of its platforms.
The jury required Meta to pay $5,000 — the maximum penalty possible — for every violation of the law, totaling $375 million.
“New Mexico is proud to be the first state to hold Meta accountable in court for misleading parents, enabling child exploitation and harming kids,” New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez wrote in a press release.
“Today, the jury joined families, educators and child safety experts in saying enough is enough.”
A spokesperson for Meta told Fox Business it plans to appeal the ruling.
New Mexico v. Meta, which New Mexico filed against Meta in 2023, featured evidence from an undercover operation in which law enforcement agents posed as children on Instagram and Facebook.
The investigation indicated Meta’s platforms:
- Show underage users sexually explicit content without prompting.
- Allow adult predators to contact children and sexually exploit them.
- Facilitate the spread and exchange of child pornography.
What’s Next?
Though juries have delivered verdicts in both cases, proceedings in neither case are over.
In KGM v. Meta, the jury must deliberate over how much Meta and YouTube should pay in punitive damages. While compensatory damages are assigned to compensate an injured party, punitive damages are levied to punish offenders and deter further poor conduct.
The companies face punitive damages because the jury determined their actions meet the legal standard for “malice,” which includes highly egregious conduct.
In New Mexico v. Meta, the judge must rule on the state’s remaining claim: that the design and operation of Meta’s platforms are a public nuisance which must be remedied.
If Judge Bryan Biedscheid rules in the state’s favor, he could force Meta to make changes to its platforms, including “enacting effective age verification, removing predators … and protecting minors from encrypted communications that shield bad actors.”
Looking Ahead
The precedent set in KGM and New Mexico could dramatically increase future plaintiffs’ likelihood of bringing successful cases against neglectful social media companies.
KGM is the first of nine bellwether cases representing a group of more than 1,600 similar social media addiction cases filed in California state court. The jury’s decision today proves social media addiction cases can win in front of a jury.
New Mexico won its case against Meta in state court. Several other states hope to triumph against social media companies in federal court this summer.
The dozens of plaintiffs in this group of cases — primarily states and school districts — allege they pay the cost for citizens’ social media addiction. KGM helps establish exactly what the social and practical costs of social media addiction can include.
Daily Citizen is a news division of Focus on the Family that provides a faith-based perspective to counter the mainstream media’s anti-Christian bias.
