WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) – As part of a 48-state settlement over social media addiction claims totaling more than $17 billion, Kansas will receive $134 million.
It also reignites the issue of social media addiction and dangerous behaviors that can lead to devastating circumstances.
For Kansas advocates, the settlement of a lawsuit that claimed social media mentally harmed children and misled the public about its safety, comes with mixed feelings.
“Yeah, it definitely helps with the accountability aspect of it, Project Heaven president Jordan Chessher said. ”A company like Meta, $17 billion is a drop in the bucket, but it is at least for showing that they are taking some accountability, at least.”
But for parents of kids who have been harmed by social media, the settlement does not take the pain away.
“When I saw the settlement, I was mad,” Megan Moore said.
Moore is the mother of Caleb, who in 2025 died by suicide after falling victim to an online sextortion scheme.
“For the evidence to come out and just how negligent and the harm that was caused … it’s really hard,” Moore said.
Kansas attorney general Kris Kobach said the settlement forces Meta to implement restrictions no other social media company has done yet.
Advocates tope this brings some change to Kansas.
“At the end of the day, if we don’t educate and we don’t prevent for our children, this is going to continue being an issue,” Chessher said.
Moore hopes no other parent has to face the heartbreak of losing a child over social media harassment.
“So that $134 million better go to making Kansas kids safe,” she said. “One-hundred percent of it.”
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