Dozens of school districts across the U.S. have filed lawsuits against social media companies, alleging that the tech giants “knowingly” cause harm to children. Arkansas recently became the latest state to file a lawsuit against Tik Tok, and ByteDance, its Chinese parent company, and Meta, the Facebook parent and Instagram owner. The lawsuit alleges that the social media companies misled consumers about the safety of children using the sites, and the protection of user data. The Arkansas lawsuit also alleges that the social media giants misled younger users about the addictive nature of the sites and adult content on the sites.
Nationwide, at least 40 school districts have filed suit against the social media giants, including Snapchat, alleging that the tech giants have created a “youth mental health crisis” with their alleged “malicious algorithms.” Recent statistics show a considerable increase in the number of teen girls who have feelings of sadness and hopelessness. Those feelings are not exclusive to girls, with one report indicating that an internal Facebook study showing that 14 percent of boys in the U.S. say that Instagram made them feel worse about themselves.
State leaders and school superintendents allege that social media giants targeted the nation’s youth and then created algorithms that provided children with harmful videos that promoted harmful content. Videos on eating disorders, committing acts of self-harm and suicide are examples of the content made available to children.
The Boone County Schools Superintendent indicates that 90 percent of kids use “potentially addictive” social media sites and that the school district believes that it deserves compensation for the mental health treatment services provided to kids because of the effects of social media.
One of the Arkansas lawsuits described Tik Tok as “a wolf in sheep’s clothing,” and stated that as long as Tik Tok is permitted to operate in the state, consumers and their privacy are easy prey for the misleading, deceptive practices of the tech giant.
While social media companies state that they instituted some controls targeted at children and teens, the alleged effects of using the sites continues to increase in the U.S. and around the globe. Research continues into the effects of social media on younger children and teens while Congress continues to hold hearings and tries to pass bills to regulate the social media giants to stop them from targeting kids.
