COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) – Colorado is one of 29 states suing Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, with Attorney General Phil Weiser claiming the conglomerate is intentionally marketing to kids.
A bipartisan group of attorneys general from across the U.S. appeared in court in California today for opening statements in a trial against Meta.
They believe Meta is creating features to make children addicted to its social media sites.
Attorney general speaks on child mental health
Colorado’s attorney general is one of three attorneys general who spoke in a news conference this afternoon.
AG Phil Weiser said children’s mental and physical health have been compromised by Meta’s actions.
“Social media platforms that are hurting our kids and causing a mental health crisis. There is now a generation of kids who have lost sleep because of notifications all hours of the night,” Weiser said.
Psychiatrist describes signs of social media addiction
11 News received answers from a child psychiatrist about social media addiction and the signs kids may show.
One key sign is kids giving up other activities to be on their devices, activities that could be crucial to their development. Psychiatrists say the brain does not know the difference between in-person interactions and those online.
Mental health experts say the earlier kids engage with social media, the stronger the connection to being affected negatively. They recommend setting rules early.
Dr. Joel Stoddard, a child psychiatrist at Children’s Hospital Colorado, said, “You’ll get kiddos who will push back, but on the same time, at the same time, sorry, there’s a movement amongst kids themselves to reduce AI use or social media use, to go to dumb phones.”
Meta responds to lawsuit
Regarding claims made by AGs at the opening statements on Tuesday, Meta says:
”The State AGs may call this a landmark case, but their limited claims are unsubstantiated, and their financial demands are vastly disproportionate.
The AGs offer no proof anyone in their states was misled, claim benign features like having an additional Instagram account somehow harmed their residents, and attempt to penalize Meta for industry-wide challenges like age verification.
Rather than sticking to the facts or the law, the states have instead decided to chase an outlandish payout. We stand by our record of creating strong protections for teens, and look forward to making our case in court.”
The trial is slated to last anywhere from six to eight weeks, going into October.
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