New York Attorney General Letitia James and a bipartisan coalition of 32 other state attorneys general are taking Meta to court for fueling addiction and a mental health crisis among children using its platforms.
The parent company of Facebook and Instagram has leveraged powerful and unprecedented technologies to attract, engage and ultimately ensnare young people and teens, according to the lawsuit filed yesterday (October 24) in the Northern District Court of California. It has covered up how these platforms exploit and manipulate its most vulnerable consumers: adolescents and children. And he ignored the enormous damage these platforms have done to the mental and physical health of our country’s youth.
Multiple studies, sometimes including Metas’ own internal findings, have found a link between youth use of Metas platforms and psychological and physical harm, including depression, anxiety, insomnia, interference with education and daily life, and many other negative outcomes. James said in a statement.
The relationship between youth mental health and social media has taken center stage this year. In his State of the Union address in February, US President Joe Biden address the negative effects of social media on the mental health of young users. In May, the surgeon general issued a health advisory on the same.
In addition to knowingly designing and deploying harmful features on Instagram, Facebook and its other social media platforms with an emphasis on profit, Metathen twisted its story to deny any harmful effects, the suit alleges. During a March 2021 congressional hearing, CEO Mark Zuckerberg refused to answer yes or no when asked whether passive consumption of content on social media thought that infinite scrolling on Instagram harmed children’s mental health.
A non-exhaustive list of features that help kids stay hooked on Instagram and Facebook
Recommendation algorithms manipulating dopamine
Likes and other social comparison features known by Meta to harm younger users (although Instagram considers hide the numbersthey remain visible by default)
Audiovisual and haptic alerts sent to young users, even during school and nighttime hours
Visual filter features ranging from remove imperfections to change the entire face shapewhich is known to promote body dysmorphia in young users
Content presentation formats, such as infinite scrolling, designed to discourage users’ attempts to self-regulate and disengage from the application.
Children and adolescents on Metas social media platforms, by the numbers
22 million: Teenagers in the United States log on to Instagram daily
81%: Share of parents who said their children started using social media between the ages of 8 and 13, according to a study cited by Meta in response to a Congressional investigation. Meta claims to weed out account holders under the age of 13.
45%: Share of children ages 9 to 12 who use Facebook daily, according to data provided by an organization called Thorn. The same research found that 40% used Instagram daily.
30% : Increase in the number of high school girls who attempted suicide between 2011 and 2021, the decade in which Instagram’s popularity exploded
42: Total number of attorneys general taking action against Meta. In addition to New York and the other 32 states, nine other attorneys general are filing lawsuits in their respective states.
Quotable: Mark Zuckerberg wants Congress to define youth use of technology
We are committed to doing the best job possible, but on one level the appropriate body to evaluate social equity tradeoffs is our democratically elected Congress. For example, what is the ideal age for teenagers to use Internet services? How should Internet services verify people’s ages? And how should companies balance teens’ privacy while giving parents visibility into their activity?
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, in a Facebook post from October 6, 2021
One more thing: Metas COPPA violation
The complaint also alleges that Meta illegally collects and monetizes the personal data of its youngest users without their parents’ permission. This is a violation of the 1998 federal law known as the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Meta penalized for the same in May.
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Image Source : qz.com