Lawyers for the New Mexico Department of Justice on Wednesday rested their case in the second phase of the state’s lawsuit against social media giant Meta.
In a bench trial with no jury, they’ve argued that Meta’s actions should be considered a public nuisance, a term that typically refers to actions that affect common spaces such as air quality, and have asked First Judicial District Judge Bryan Biedscheid to enforce an injunction that would “fundamentally restructure how Meta operates for children.” The state’s case also seeks a court-appointed monitor to oversee the company’s compliance with that restructuring, which includes banning “addictive” features such as infinite scrolling.
New Mexico economist Kelly O’Donnell testified on Wednesday that over the course of 15 years, an abatement plan for Meta could carry a price tag of $3.7 billion. The majority of that figure — about $2.8 billion — accounted for treatment for children who have experienced abuse on Meta’s platforms.
Earlier in the trial, Harvard Assistant Professor of Health Decision Sciences Zachary Ward testified that young girls, in particular, are more likely than boys to have suicide “risk factors” derived from social media use. Middle school-aged girls who use social media are also much more likely to develop eating disorders, he said.
“When I remove social media exposure, the risk of having any disordered eating behavior drops substantially for girls,” he said. “So, 45% of girls who are experiencing disordered eating behaviors would not have had those problems but for their social media exposure.”
Another expert witness testified this week that virtual sexual abuse often “has the same impact” on survivors as “face-to-face” abuse.
“I did a study and it shows over 90% of commercial sexual exploitation that police are picking up is happening via technology and is technology-facilitated,” University of Texas at Arlington Associate Professor of Social Work Jennifer O’Brien said.
In court Wednesday, Meta’s attorneys argued that the company has already implemented many of the NMDOJ’s desired safety measures, including blocking adults from messaging children with whom they aren’t connected, and limiting adults from sending “unreasonable” amounts of friend requests or messages to underage users.
A Meta spokesperson wrote in a statement to Source NM that the NMDOJ’s arguments ignore “the hundreds of other apps teens use daily.”
“Rather than providing comprehensive protections, the state’s proposed mandates infringe on parental rights and stifle free expression for all New Mexicans,” the statement said. “Regardless, we remain committed to providing safe, age-appropriate experiences and have already launched many of the protections the state seeks, including 13 safety measures this past year.”
Previously, a Santa Fe jury ordered Meta to pay $375 million in damages to the state based on 75,000 violations of the state’s Unfair Practices Act. The jury found that the company misled the public on the risks of mental health and sexual exploitation that Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp created for youth users.
Meta officials previously said they would consider ceasing Facebook and Instagram operations in New Mexico if the judge granted the state’s request. A news release Wednesday from NMDOJ said Meta is expected to complete presenting its case by May 22, after which the parties will present further arguments to the court.
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