Key facts
- Meta and Snap face a trial over claims that social media platforms caused mental health issues in two teenage plaintiffs.
- This is the second individual trial alleging addictive platform design, following a March verdict against Meta and YouTube.
- Plaintiffs allege features like autoplay and infinite scroll led to compulsive use and mental health problems.
- Meta and Snap deny the allegations, citing platform safeguards and multiple factors influencing youth mental health.
- The cases are bellwethers for over 3,000 consolidated lawsuits concerning social media's impact on young people.
- Meta previously settled with US states for up to $18 billion over teen mental health claims.
Meta Platforms and Snap face a trial in Los Angeles starting Wednesday, marking the second individual case to test claims that social media companies deliberately designed addictive platforms that harm young users. Two teenage plaintiffs allege that features like autoplay and infinite scroll led to compulsive use and subsequent mental health issues such as depression and anxiety.
The trial is expected to last several weeks, with testimony anticipated from Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Instagram head Adam Mosseri, and Snap CEO Evan Spiegel. The plaintiffs had initially sued TikTok and Alphabet's YouTube, settling with those companies and Meta (for one plaintiff) before this trial, which focuses on claims against Snap and Meta for the Mississippi plaintiff.
Both Meta and Snap deny the allegations. Meta stated that a young person's mental health is shaped by many factors and that the plaintiff's struggles were influenced by other circumstances, while Snap highlighted its platform's design differences and safeguards. These cases are considered bellwethers for over 3,000 consolidated lawsuits, with a previous trial in March resulting in a $6 million damages award against Meta and YouTube.