Landmark trial accusing social media companies of addicting children to their platforms begins

"LOS ANGELES -- The world's biggest social media companies face several landmark trials this year that seek to hold them responsible for harms to children who use their platforms. Opening statements for the first, in Los Angeles County Superior Court, begin this week. Instagram's parent company Meta and Google's YouTube will face claims that their platforms deliberately addict and harm children."

"TikTok and Snap, which were originally named in the lawsuit, settled for undisclosed sums. "This was only the first case - there are hundreds of parents and school districts in the social media addiction trials that start today, and sadly, new families every day who are speaking out and bringing Big Tech to court for its deliberately harmful products," said Sacha Haworth, executive director of the nonprofit Tech Oversight Project."

"At the core of the Los Angeles case is a 19-year-old identified only by the initials "KGM," whose case could determine how thousands of other, similar lawsuits against social media companies will play out. She and two other plaintiffs have been selected for bellwether trials - essentially test cases for both sides to see how their arguments play out before a jury and what damages, if any, may be awarded,"

Major social media companies face landmark trials this year alleging responsibility for harms to children who use their platforms. Opening statements in Los Angeles County Superior Court begin this week, with Meta and YouTube named as defendants while TikTok and Snap settled earlier. Hundreds of parents and school districts are pursuing social media addiction claims, according to a nonprofit executive quoted in the case. A 19-year-old identified as "KGM" is a bellwether plaintiff whose claims of addiction, worsened depression, and suicidal thoughts could shape thousands of similar lawsuits and influence how platforms handle child users.

Read at ABC7 Los Angeles