LINCOLN — As Attorney General, one of my most solemn obligations is to protect Nebraska’s children from those who prey upon them. And as a dad with four school-aged children, I know firsthand the challenges of being a parent in today’s age. Unfortunately, reckless and predatory companies exist that target children and would do them harm. We won’t stand by and let that happen; our office is leading the fight to protect our communities and our children with two important lawsuits.
In the first lawsuit, Nebraska sued Meta, the company that owns Facebook and Instagram, for recklessly targeting children, addicting them to its platforms, and misleading parents. Parents around the state are trying to make the best decisions they can for their kids. And when it comes to social media, those decisions can be difficult, especially as the harms these platforms cause children are often insidious and not always obvious.
Parents are entitled to truthful and accurate information about the harms social media platforms can cause their children and reasonably expect companies to not mislead them or lie about the risks of using their products.
It turns out that Meta’s internal data and documents show serious harms caused by using its products. For example, Meta has long known that use of its social media platforms, particularly for young girls, is causally correlated with increased mental health issues, including depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, and body dysmorphia issues.
Given the risk of harm, you would expect Meta to address its harmful effects or at least inform parents to help them in their effort to protect their kids. Did it do that? No. Instead of protecting kids, Meta targeted them, crafting their algorithms in a way to hook the “valuable and untapped” youth market.