This Lawsuit Against Big Tech Could Change the Social Media Landscape Forever

A 20-year-old woman recently spoke in front of a Los Angeles court about her addiction to social media. He said he started using YouTube at the age of six and had an Instagram account at the age of nine. The woman, known only as KGM, says the way social media algorithms, autoplay, and other features work have led her to addiction, depression and physical enhancement.

And he is not alone. The California Judicial Council Coordination Proceeding brought together similar claims from about 1,600 plaintiffs, including families and school districts. However, the KGM case stands out because of its new legal strategy: Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act has protected social networks from user-posted content for decades, but accuses the platforms of “product liability based on negligence.” It’s not just user content that has had a negative impact on him, but the engineering and design of the platform. And it may be working – TikTok and Snapchat reportedly settled with KGM before the lawsuit, with Meta and Google remaining as defendants. It’s not the first time Meta has been sued, but it may be the most significant case yet.

According to the National Library of Medicine, social media has become an addiction for many users, especially young people. Compulsive use fueled by endless app scrolling can lead to low self-esteem and mental health issues. The leaked internal Meta documents also revealed the company’s research into the effects of Instagram on young people’s body image and mental health. In the process, communications shared between Meta employees compared social media to drugs and gambling.

However, social media is fighting back. A Meta spokesperson said KGM already has issues at home with bullies using or not using social media – issues that “would have existed without Instagram.” Many platforms have argued that their apps do not cause clinical addiction.

The jury must decide whether Meta and Google’s social networks played a major role in KGM’s suffering. If they do, social networks may have to change the way they operate. It is something that other countries have been pushing for. The European Commission has accused TikTok of using a type of content “reward” design to keep users scrolling mindlessly. Australia has completely cut off social media access for under-16s, with similar concerns that it is harming younger users. KGM’s attorney, Mark Lanier, said, “I’m not dismissing the opportunity to make money, but if you’re making money with children, you have to do it responsibly.”