Social Media and Child Safety

Two back‑to‑back jury verdicts this week found major platforms liable for youth harms: a New Mexico trial concluded Meta violated state consumer‑protection law, ordering $375 million after jurors found the company misled users and “unconscionably” endangered children (in part based on an undercover probe), and a Los Angeles case held Meta and YouTube negligent under a product‑design theory, awarding $6 million to a plaintiff who said algorithms and features addicted her as a teen. Both cases centered on engagement‑driven algorithms, infinite scroll and other design features aimed at keeping users hooked — a legal strategy intended to sidestep Section 230 — and have prompted warnings that the rulings could spur appeals, regulatory changes (age verification, content‑safety mandates) and closer scrutiny of algorithmic promotion of harmful and hateful content.