A California woman is testifying in a landmark trial, detailing how early use of Meta's Instagram and Google's YouTube allegedly led to significant mental health issues, including depression and body dysmorphia. Identified as Kaley G.M., she began using Instagram at age 9 and YouTube at age 6.
Her legal team argues the companies intentionally designed addictive features to profit from young users, despite awareness of potential harm. This case is part of a growing global scrutiny of social media's impact on children and teens, with some countries already implementing bans.
The trial is now focusing on the plaintiff's personal claims, following initial arguments about the companies' knowledge of social media's effects and their strategies for younger demographics. To succeed, her lawyers must prove the platforms' design and operation substantially contributed to her mental health struggles.
Attorneys for Meta highlighted her personal history, including parental divorce and abuse, as potential factors in her mental health. Conversely, her own legal counsel cited an internal Meta study suggesting teens facing difficulties were more prone to habitual Instagram use.
Lawyers for the plaintiff contend features like autoplay videos and infinite scrolling were engineered to maximize user engagement, irrespective of documented harms. They also point to "like" buttons and beauty filters as contributing to validation-seeking behavior and distorted self-image among teenagers.
YouTube's defense, however, argued in court filings that the plaintiff did not utilize available protective features, such as comment deletion or time-limiting tools. Records cited show her average daily viewing of YouTube Shorts was approximately 1 minute 14 seconds, with overall video streaming averaging around 29 minutes over five years.