Background information
Social media on trial: 7 questions and answers
by Samuel Buchmann
Meta and YouTube lose landmark court case
26.3.2026
Translation: machine translated
In the USA, a jury has sentenced two social media platforms to pay fines. Meta and YouTube had negligently enticed young people into addiction. The decision could have far-reaching consequences.
A jury in Los Angeles has found Meta and Google liable in a landmark trial as if the addictive design of Instagram and YouTube had caused addiction. The jury concluded that the platforms did not adequately warn children and young people of the risks. The design decisions had contributed to the development of mental health problems.
The plaintiff was a 20-year-old woman who had used Instagram and YouTube since childhood. According to her own statements, she developed an addiction, accompanied by depression, anxiety disorders and body image problems. TikTok and Snap were originally also charged, but reached an out-of-court settlement before the trial began. You can read more about the case here:
The jury awarded the plaintiff a total of six million US dollars, three million of which as satisfaction and three million as an additional penalty payment to serve as a deterrent. Meta will bear 70 per cent of the sum, Google 30 per cent. According to the jury, the companies acted negligently. They deliberately used functions such as endless scrolling and autoplay to retain users for as long as possible.
Meta and Google reject the accusations and have announced an appeal. «The mental health of young people cannot be attributed to a single app», says Meta spokesperson Francis Brennan to «The Verge». Google disputes the basic premise of the lawsuit: YouTube is not a social media site, but a «responsibly built streaming platform».
Similar judgement in New Mexico
The amount of the fine is likely to be of little concern to the two companies in the individual case. However, the trial is the first of more than 20 so-called bellwether trials on social media addiction. The judgements set the tone for thousands of similar lawsuits brought by families, school districts and states. At the same time, a jury in New Mexico fined Meta USD 375 million in civil penalties for concealing and exploiting risks to children.
If things continue like this, things will get uncomfortable for the platforms. They could face a disaster similar to that experienced by tobacco companies in the 1990s when they trivialised health risks. However, the last word is far from being spoken. The Los Angeles case will now end up in the Court of Appeal of California. It will not be decided by a jury, but by a panel of three judges. Other potential stages are the Supreme Court of California and finally the national Supreme Court. It could take years before a final judgement is reached.
Header image: Shutterstock
Samuel Buchmann
Senior Editor
Samuel.Buchmann@digitecgalaxus.chMy fingerprint often changes so drastically that my MacBook doesn't recognise it anymore. The reason? If I'm not clinging to a monitor or camera, I'm probably clinging to a rockface by the tips of my fingers.
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