"On February 18th, Mark Zuckerberg the CEO of Meta, testified in court for a case about social media addictions, what does this mean?" --Paloma Bastos, 7th grade
On February 18th, Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, testified in court in a case about social media addictions in youth. But what does this mean for Zuckerberg and his many well-known apps? Meta owns popular apps such as Instagram and Facebook, and many young people you know have at least one of them. For years now, people have been arguing over whether teens should have access to apps like those because of the many dangers, but what are those dangers?
This trial against Meta and YouTube started back in January and is centered around a plaintiff who is identified as KGM. KGM claims that social media caused her to have mental health issues and made her addicted to apps like TikTok and Snapchat, which were involved in the lawsuit as well, but settled shortly before the trial.
But what are the dangers of those apps, and why are parents so worried about their kids having access to social media? Instagram, an app owned by Meta, is a huge social media app that people use to post videos and photos of themselves or others, but it has grown bigger and started having features like beauty filters that can completely alter your face. Over time, using these beauty filters can change how you see yourself, which causes teens to become insecure about their looks.
Zuckerberg did address the beauty filters and temporarily shut them down after it was claimed that they were promoting plastic surgery. Zuckerberg says that the company decided to allow beauty filters in support of free expression, but said that "we shouldn't create them ourselves or recommend them."
In court, the lawyer for the lead plaintiff in the case, Mark Lanier, presented emails from 2019 between Zuckerberg and three top Meta executives that talked about Meta's unenforced age limits.
Lanier also asked Zuckerberg about a 2019 report made by another company on behalf of Instagram. The report found that teens using the platform felt “hooked despite how it made them feel.” The report added that teens using the platform had “an addict narrative about their Instagram use.”
"It can make them feel good, it can make them feel bad, they wish they could spend less time caring about it,” the report mentioned. Zuckerberg made it clear that the research was not conducted by Meta.
A lot of people, including minors, have different opinions on whether kids and teens should have access to popular platforms like Instagram or TikTok. Violet Regilio, a 7th-grade Literary Arts student who has social media, says, “I personally think it makes sense for teens to have social media because it's a way to interact with the world in a way, I guess, but I'm not the biggest fan [of] children having social media.” Regilio may have social media apps like TikTok and Instagram, but does think social media can be dangerous for kids.
Lottie Mills, another 7th-grade Literary Arts student who, unlike Regilio, does not have social media, says “no [children should not have social media] because it can be dangerous.” Mills also says, “social media definitely affects how they see themselves.”
Paul Schmidt, Meta's lawyer, also questioned Zuckerberg about the report. Zuckerberg said the report also mentioned “positive” aspects of Instagram. Schmidt claimed that the report helped find ways to improve the platform.
Instagram does have rules for underage users; for example, users under 13 are not allowed on the platform. However, Zuckerberg said that it is difficult to enforce because there’s "a meaningful number of people who lie about their age to use our services."
As of March 24th, the New Mexico jury found Meta negligent in the trial. The jurors awarded the plaintiff $3 million in damages, finding Meta 70% responsible for the harm caused to her, and YouTube was responsible for 30%.
This trial against Meta and YouTube started back in January and is centered around a plaintiff who is identified as KGM. KGM claims that social media caused her to have mental health issues and made her addicted to apps like TikTok and Snapchat, which were involved in the lawsuit as well, but settled shortly before the trial.
But what are the dangers of those apps, and why are parents so worried about their kids having access to social media? Instagram, an app owned by Meta, is a huge social media app that people use to post videos and photos of themselves or others, but it has grown bigger and started having features like beauty filters that can completely alter your face. Over time, using these beauty filters can change how you see yourself, which causes teens to become insecure about their looks.
Zuckerberg did address the beauty filters and temporarily shut them down after it was claimed that they were promoting plastic surgery. Zuckerberg says that the company decided to allow beauty filters in support of free expression, but said that "we shouldn't create them ourselves or recommend them."
In court, the lawyer for the lead plaintiff in the case, Mark Lanier, presented emails from 2019 between Zuckerberg and three top Meta executives that talked about Meta's unenforced age limits.
Lanier also asked Zuckerberg about a 2019 report made by another company on behalf of Instagram. The report found that teens using the platform felt “hooked despite how it made them feel.” The report added that teens using the platform had “an addict narrative about their Instagram use.”
"It can make them feel good, it can make them feel bad, they wish they could spend less time caring about it,” the report mentioned. Zuckerberg made it clear that the research was not conducted by Meta.
A lot of people, including minors, have different opinions on whether kids and teens should have access to popular platforms like Instagram or TikTok. Violet Regilio, a 7th-grade Literary Arts student who has social media, says, “I personally think it makes sense for teens to have social media because it's a way to interact with the world in a way, I guess, but I'm not the biggest fan [of] children having social media.” Regilio may have social media apps like TikTok and Instagram, but does think social media can be dangerous for kids.
Lottie Mills, another 7th-grade Literary Arts student who, unlike Regilio, does not have social media, says “no [children should not have social media] because it can be dangerous.” Mills also says, “social media definitely affects how they see themselves.”
Paul Schmidt, Meta's lawyer, also questioned Zuckerberg about the report. Zuckerberg said the report also mentioned “positive” aspects of Instagram. Schmidt claimed that the report helped find ways to improve the platform.
Instagram does have rules for underage users; for example, users under 13 are not allowed on the platform. However, Zuckerberg said that it is difficult to enforce because there’s "a meaningful number of people who lie about their age to use our services."
As of March 24th, the New Mexico jury found Meta negligent in the trial. The jurors awarded the plaintiff $3 million in damages, finding Meta 70% responsible for the harm caused to her, and YouTube was responsible for 30%.
