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Closing arguments began Monday in a landmark trial in New Mexico where social media conglomerate\u00a0Meta\u00a0is accused of misleading its users about how safe its platforms are for children.<\/p>\n
Jurors will take up the case after the arguments and six weeks of testimony from scores of witnesses that included local teachers, psychiatric experts, state investigators, top Meta officials and whistleblowers who left the company.<\/p>\n
The case in New Mexico state court is among the first to reach trial in a wave of litigation involving social media platforms and their impacts on children.<\/p>\n
New Mexico prosecutors\u00a0have accused Meta\u00a0\u2014 which owns Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp \u2014 of prioritizing profits over safety in violation of state consumer protection laws. They have raised concerns about the safety of complex algorithms, and a variety of messaging features and settings.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s clear that young people are spending too much time on Meta\u2019s products, they\u2019ve lost control,\u201d prosecution attorney Linda Singer told the jury in closing statements. \u201cMeta knew that and it didn\u2019t disclose it.\u201d<\/p>\n
At the same time, Singer said testimony and evidence at trial showed Meta\u2019s algorithms had been recommending sensational and harmful content to teenagers, and failing to truly enforce its minimum user age of 13.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe safety issues that you\u2019ve heard about in this case, weren\u2019t mistakes. \u2026. They were a product of a corporate philosophy that chose growth and engagement over children\u2019s safety,\u201d Singer said. \u201cAnd young people in this state and around the country have borne the cost.\u201d<\/p>\n
Attorneys for Meta dispute the claims and say\u00a0the company\u00a0incorporates protections for teenagers and weeds out\u00a0harmful content, while also acknowledging that some potentially harmful posts get past its safety nets.<\/p>\n
Singer urged jurors to impose a civil penalty of more than $2 billion against Meta, based on the maximum $5,000 penalty per violation on two counts of consumer protection violations, and an estimated 208,700 monthly users of Meta platforms under the age of 18 in New Mexico.<\/p>\n
\u201cOver the course of a decade Meta has failed over and over again to act honestly and transparently, failed to act to protect young people in this state,\u201d Singer said. \u201cIt is up to you to finish this job.\u201d<\/p>\n
A second phase of the trial with follow with a judge deciding whether Meta created a public nuisance and should be on the hook financially to fund programs to address alleged harms to children.<\/p>\n
Attorney General Ra\u00fal Torrez filed suit in 2023, accusing Meta of creating a marketplace and \u201cbreeding ground\u201d for predators who target children for sexual exploitation and failing to disclose what it knew about those harmful effects. State investigators created social media accounts posing as children to document online sexual solicitations and the response from Meta.<\/p>\n
Meta attorneys have said the company is honest with platform users about rigorous but imperfect efforts to enforce bans on child sexual abuse material. They also accuse prosecutors of cherry-picking evidence and conducting a shoddy investigation.<\/p>\n
Meta executives emphasized at trial that the company continuously improves safety and addresses compulsive social media use without infringing on free speech or censoring users.<\/p>\n
But the prosecution on Monday said that public assurances about safety disclosures from Meta executives including Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram Head Adam Mosseri often didn\u2019t square with internal studies and communications at the company.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was included in Meta\u2019s internal research \u2014 again this was research that didn\u2019t get disclosed by Meta \u2014 one-in-three teens experienced problematic use,\u201d Singer said. \u201cThey knew these kids were struggling with problematic use \u2014 again, addiction.\u201d<\/p>\n
A jury assembled from residents of Santa Fe County, including the politically progressive state capital city, will decide whether Meta violated the state\u2019s Unfair Practices Act on two counts, including \u201cunconscionable\u201d trade practices.<\/p>\n
A finding of willful violations would open the way for possible fines of up to $5,000 per violation. Prosecutors say that could add up to billions of dollars, while Meta said it would seek a different calculation.<\/p>\n
Tech companies have been protected from liability for material posted on their social media platforms under\u00a0Section 230, a 30-year-old provision of the U.S. Communications Decency Act, as well as a First Amendment shield.<\/p>\n
Prosecutors say New Mexico is not seeking to hold Meta accountable for content on its platforms, but rather its role in pushing out that content through complex algorithms that proliferate material that can be addictive and harmful to children.<\/p>\n
In California, a jury already is sequestered in deliberations on\u00a0whether Meta and YouTube should be liable\u00a0for harms caused to children using their platforms. The bellwether case could impact how thousands of similar lawsuits against social media companies are likely to play out.<\/p>\n
#teens #experienced #problematic #Meta #apps #closing #remarks #social #media #trial<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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