Meta settles major social media addiction lawsuit with school district

Kentucky is one of about 1,200 school districts across the US that have each sued Meta, TikTok, Snap and YouTube Meta agreed to settle a major lawsuit on Thursday with a school district in Kentucky over claims that its social networks are designed to be addictive, leading to harm in children. The settlement comes less than three weeks before the case was scheduled to go to trial in federal court in California. About 1,200 school districts from across the US came together to each sue Meta, TikTok, Snap and YouTube for allegedly fueling a mental health crisis in children. TikTok, Snap and YouTube settled their suits with Kentucky over the past couple of weeks. “We’ve resolved this case amicably and remain focused on our longstanding work to build protections like Teen Accounts that help teens stay safe online, while giving parents simple controls to support their families,” said a Meta spokesperson. The company, which owns Facebook and Instagram, did not disclose the terms of the settlement. A YouTube spokesperson also said the matter was resolved amicably and confidentially and that “for more than a decade, we’ve built YouTube responsibly – working with teachers, administrators, and