Zuckerberg defends Meta in landmark social media addiction trial

The billionaire chief executive faces is questioned over whether use of Instagram harms children.

Zuckerberg Says ‘Difficult’ to Enforce Instagram Age Limits - Bloomberg.com

Zuckerberg Says ‘Difficult’ to Enforce Instagram Age Limits  Bloomberg.com

Mark Zuckerberg Says Instagram Is Valuable, Not Harmful, in Landmark Tech Addiction Trial

Meta’s chief executive said users spent a lot of time on the app because of its value, as he was grilled about child safety issues in front of a jury.

By Eli Tan

Zuckerberg to Testify in First Major Social Media Addiction Case - The Wall Street Journal

Zuckerberg to Testify in First Major Social Media Addiction Case  The Wall Street Journal

Mark Zuckerberg testifies in landmark social media trial over teen mental health

Lawyers for the plaintiffs argue that Meta intentionally designed its social media platforms to be addictive The Meta CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, is testifying at a landmark trial of social media companies on Wednesday. After arriving at the courthouse, Zuckerberg was asked by a security guard at a metal detector if he had any metal on him. “I have a gold chain on,” he responded, according to the New York Post. Continue reading...

By Sanya Mansoor

Zuckerberg grilled about Meta's strategy to target 'teens' and 'tweens'

The billionaire tech mogul's testimony was part of a landmark social media addiction trial in Los Angeles. The jury's verdict in the case could shape how some 1,600 other pending cases from families and school districts are resolved.

By Bobby Allyn

Mark Zuckerberg appears to be ‘served’ new lawsuit upon arrival at court

A man handed Mark Zuckerberg a stack of papers and said “you’ve been served with a summons and complaint."

Mark Zuckerberg testifies in social media addiction trial

Google and Mark Zuckerberg's Meta have been accused of deliberately making platforms addictive to children and harming their mental health.

Zuckerberg defends Meta policies on children at landmark social media harm trial

Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg defended the company’s policies on children and platform design during a landmark US trial examining whether social media firms knowingly harmed young users, as internal documents and testimony highlighted tensions between safety claims and growth strategies.

By FRANCE 24

Parents hope the 'tide will turn' against Big Tech as Mark Zuckerberg takes the stand

Mike Blake/Reuters Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg took the stand on Wednesday in a landmark trial about social media addiction. Parents who say their kids were harmed by social media platforms showed up to face the Meta CEO. The case could impact how other lawsuits play out. Meta said the legal battles could cost them billions. Lori Schott, a mother from rural Colorado, said she stared down Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg as he walked into court in Los Angeles on Wednesday to testify in a landmark trial regarding social media addiction. Schott lost her 18-year-old daughter, Annalee, to suicide in 2020. She believes the content Annalee saw on social media platforms "destroyed" her mental health. "I made eye contact with him for quite a long time," Schott said of Zuckerberg. "I was not backing down." Schott is not a plaintiff in the case where Zuckerberg testified on Wednesday, but is among more than 2,000 individuals who have similar personal injury lawsuits pending regarding social media addiction and harm. The case underway in Los Angeles centers on a 20-year-old woman, identified by the initials KGM, who says her use of social media throughout her childhood negatively affected her mental health, contributing to depression and suicidal thoughts. It is considered a bellwether trial that could indicate how other similar lawsuits related to social media harm, like Schott's, could play out. Lori Schott, a mother from rural Colorado, lost her 18-year-old daughter, Annalee, to suicide in 2020. Jill Connelly/Getty Images Meta, which owns Instagram and Facebook, was named as a defendant alongside Google-owned YouTube, TikTok, and Snapchat. TikTok and Snapchat both settled the lawsuit out of court. Last month, Meta warned investors that its mounting legal battles over youth safety could "significantly impact" its 2026 financial results. Attorneys for more than 100,000 individual arbitration claimants have "sent mass arbitration demands relating to 'social media addiction'" since late 2024, the company said in a 2026 10-K, which warned that potential damages in certain cases could reach into the "high tens of billions of dollars." In a statement, Stephanie Otway, a Meta spokesperson, said: "We strongly disagree with these allegations and are confident the evidence will show our longstanding commitment to supporting young people." Otway highlighted changes the company has made over the past decade, including Teen Accounts, which give parents tools to manage their teens' accounts. Google declined to comment. TikTok did not respond to a request for comment. A Snapchat spokesperson said in a statement: "The Parties are pleased to have been able to resolve this matter in an amicable manner." On Wednesday, parents showed up hours before the courthouse opened in hopes of getting a seat inside. Many of them had personal stories about how they believed social media use harmed their children. Parents gathered outside the Los Angeles Superior Court on Wednesday. Frederic J. Brown / AFP via Getty Images "We face a lot of stigma from people telling us we're bad parents," said Amy Neville, another parent who attended to show her support. She said that once the evidence comes out in the trial, she believes "the tide will turn, and the general public will be on board with us." "It is by design that social media is tearing their family apart," Neville said. On the stand, Zuckerberg said that teens represent less than 1% of Meta's ad revenue and that most teens don't have disposable income, so it's not especially valuable to advertisers to reach them. Zuckerberg said it's in Meta's best interest to create a platform that inspires people and makes them want to stick around for the long term. "If people aren't happy with a service, eventually over time they'll stop using it and use something better," he said. Sarah Gardner said that regardless of the outcome of the trial, she hopes it raises awareness about how the social media companies, and specifically Zuckerberg, have been operating. Gardner is the CEO of the Heat Initiative, an advocacy group that pressures Big Tech companies to make their platforms safer for kids. She was at the courthouse with the parents who believe they have been affected. Gardner said she's hopeful the trial will empower more people to say, "I don't want to be on Instagram anymore." Read the original article on Business Insider

Mark Zuckerberg kept his cool on the stand and gave all the right answers – just not ones with any humanity

‘You expect a 9-year-old to read all of the fine print?’ Zuckerberg was asked by attorneys representing a social media user who claims her exposure to platforms owned by Meta caused negative mental health outcomes

By Justin Rohrlich

Zuckerberg called Tim Cook about teen safety: What happened next?

Mark Zuckerberg testified in a high-stakes trial where Meta faces allegations of designing platforms like Instagram to be addictive for children, contributing to mental health issues. The lawsuit, which could reshape Big Tech accountability, centers on claims that engagement-driven features harm young users. Zuckerberg defended Meta's policies while acknowledging challenges in age verification.

By TOI World Desk

Zuckerberg denies Instagram targets kids

Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday repeatedly said during a landmark trial over youth social media addiction that the Facebook ‌and Instagram operator does not allow kids under 13 on its platforms, despite being confronted with evidence suggesting they were a key demographic. Mark Lanier, a lawyer for the woman suing Instagram and Google's YouTube for harming her mental health when she was a child, pressed Zuckerberg over his statement to Congress in 2024 that users under 13 are not

By The Korea Herald

Zuckerberg Defiant In Social Media Trial Testimony: “I’m Focused On Building A Community That Is Sustainable”

Meta CEO Zuckerberg pushed back hard today in court over claims that social media platforms like Instagram aim to hook and potentially harm users through calibrated algorithms and other engineering Unlike rivals and one-tine fellow defendants TikTok and Snap, the Facebook founder showed no sign of even contemplating settling a potentially game changing mental health […]

By Dominic Patten

Mark Zuckerberg Testifies at Landmark Trial on Teen Social-Media Addiction

“I’ve done media over time, but I’m sort of well-known to be very bad at this,” the 41-year-old billionaire told the jury

By Nancy Dillon

Meta’s Zuckerberg denies at LA trial that Instagram targets kids

Zuckerberg faces tough questions in landmark trial over social media's impact on youth mental health, as internal documents reveal potential contradictions in the company's age policies and user engagement strategies

By Reuters

Meta's Zuckerberg denies at LA trial that Instagram targets kids - The Daily Star

Meta's Zuckerberg denies at LA trial that Instagram targets kids  The Daily Star