Instagram CEO Testifies in Social Media Addiction Trial

A landmark trial in United States===California is examining whether Meta Platforms (parent company of Meta Platforms===Instagram and Facebook) and Google (owner of Google===YouTube) deliberately designed their social media platforms to be addictive to children for profit. Meta Platforms===Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri testified, dismissing claims of clinical addiction and differentiating it from problematic use, while asserting that protecting minors is beneficial for business. The lawsuit centers on a 20-year-old woman, Kaley G.M., who allegedly suffered severe mental harm due to social media addiction starting at a young age. Plaintiffs' attorney W. Mark Lanier accused the companies of building 'traps' for young users. Meta Platforms' defense argues the plaintiff's issues stem from home life, not social media. Google===YouTube's counsel claims its platform is not intentionally addictive and is more like a viewing service. The trial is a bellwether case, with its outcome potentially influencing over a thousand similar lawsuits across the United States, and Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Google===YouTube CEO Neal Mohan are also expected to testify.