Wisconsin Attorney General Joins Other States in Lawsuit Against Meta

Wednesday, October 25th, 2023 -- 1:00 PM

Meta, Facebook’s parent company, was slapped with lawsuits from a bipartisan group of 42 state attorneys general yesterday that allege the social media giant knowingly harmed teens and kids.

A majority of the states, including Wisconsin, Colorado, South Carolina, and Minnesota, filed a federal lawsuit accusing Meta of targeting young people with addictive algorithms on Facebook and Instagram, and then publicly downplaying the psychological damage its apps can cause.

AGs in the District of Columbia, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and five other states filed separate but similar state lawsuits against Meta. Florida filed its own federal suit. A spokesperson for the company said it shares the “attorneys generals’ commitment to providing teens with safe, positive experiences online” but argued lawsuits are not a productive route to solve the issue.

This might finally force Meta to create guardrails. Constant scrolling on apps like Instagram could be hurting young people’s mental health, according to several reports and warnings that have surfaced in the last few years.

Leaked slides from an internal Meta study revealed that teen girls felt Instagram was damaging their body image. In May, the US Surgeon General issued a public advisory that social media adds significant risk to kids’ health.

Though teens are undoubtedly facing a rising mental health crisis, experts are still divided on the relationship between social media use and well-being. Meta’s not the only target. AGs from some of the states involved in the Meta lawsuits are also investigating TikTok for the same issue.

Earlier this month, Utah followed Arkansas’s and Indiana’s lead in suing the company, citing concerns for childrens’ mental health.

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