Meta New Mexico Trial

Jurors in a bellwether trial about the impacts of social media on children are studying a deposition from Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Shown in a New Mexico courtroom on Wednesday, the video interview with Zuckerberg explores research and company discussions about negative experiences among young users of Instagram and other Meta social media platforms. Prosecutors say Meta failed to disclose what it knows about the harmful effects of its platforms, in violation of state consumer protection laws. Meta says the company discloses risks and makes efforts to weed out harmful content. Depositions from Zuckerberg and Instagram leader Adam Mosseri are centerpieces of the case.

Jury deliberations have begun in a landmark trial where New Mexico prosecutors are accusing social media conglomerate Meta of misleading people about the safety of its platforms for children. Meta denies violating state consumer protection laws. Nationwide, social media companies are contending with lawsuits that allege the platforms harm children. The closing arguments in the New Mexico case were delivered Monday after six weeks of testimony from scores of witnesses that included teachers, psychiatric experts, state investigators, top Meta officials and whistleblowers that left the company.

A New Mexico jury finds that social media conglomerate Meta is harmful to children’s mental health and in violation of state consumer protection law. The jury announced its verdict Tuesday as another jury deliberates a similar case in California against Meta, which owns Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp. State prosecutors said Meta prioritized profits over safety in violation of the state’s Unfair Practices Act and failed to adequately monitor the platforms for child sexual exploitation. Attorneys for Meta say company discloses risks and makes efforts to weed out harmful content and experiences, but that some bad material gets through its safety net. A Meta spokesperson says the company will appeal.