On Tuesday, a coalition of 41 states and the District of Columbia sued Meta, which controls Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, accusing it of making its social media sites Instagram and Facebook addictive and harmful to children.
The action is the most recent effort by North American state officials to curb the impact of social media on the mental health of minors and force Meta to change the characteristics of its networks because of the danger they say it poses to younger users.
A total of 33 states, including Colorado and California, filed the joint lawsuit in federal court in the Northern District of California, while other attorneys general in Washington, D.C., and eight other states filed separate complaints in federal, state or local courts.
The number of complaints stems from a 2021 investigation into the various ways the tech conglomerate contributed to mental health problems among young people.
In 2021, The Wall Street Journal published an insider report on how Instagram had worsened the way users, especially girls and teenagers, felt about their bodies, and emphasized that the company knew about it.
Since then, some states, such as Arkansas or Utah, have passed laws that prohibit children under 13 from accessing social media and require teens under 18 to have their parents’ consent to access the sites.
California has passed laws that require tech companies to review their platforms for potential risks and problems.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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