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Federal Judge Allows Lawsuit Against Social Media Companies Over Youth Mental Health Crisis

Social media platforms are designed to addict children while also facilitating the spread of child sexual content, the lawsuit argues.
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Federal Judge Allows Lawsuit Against Social Media Companies Over Youth Mental Health Crisis
Social media apps on a smartphone in this file photo. Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images
Naveen Athrappully
Naveen Athrappully
Reporter
11/16/2023|Updated: 11/16/2023
0:00

A federal judge ruled on Tuesday that Big Tech social media firms must face a lawsuit accusing the companies of designing platforms in a way that creates a “youth mental health crisis.”

The multidistrict litigation was brought against Facebook and Instagram (owned by Meta), TikTok (owned by ByteDance), Snapchat, and YouTube (owned by Google). It alleged that the defendants target children as a “core market” and design their platforms “to appeal to and addict them,” according to a Nov. 14 court filing.
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Naveen Athrappully
Naveen Athrappully
Reporter
Naveen Athrappully is a news reporter covering business and world events at The Epoch Times.
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