{
  "id": 1900911,
  "title": "Meta hooked children on Facebook and Instagram, US court hears",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/19/meta-hooked-children-on-facebook-and-instagram-us-court-hears-1900911",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-19T08:38:47.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "KBC",
    "slug": "kbc",
    "url": "https://www.kbc.co.ke/meta-hooked-children-on-facebook-and-instagram-us-court-hears/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A court has heard allegations that Meta intentionally attracted a generation of children to Facebook and Instagram, as the major legal challenge against the social media giant commenced. In Oakland, California, a jury will examine claims from multiple attorneys representing various US states and Meta's legal team over the next six weeks. A California lawyer argued that Meta discovered \"millions\" of 11 and 12-year-olds on Instagram and failed to prevent their access, while Meta's representative claimed only around 100,000 such users were found. The trial centers on a lawsuit filed in 2023 by 29 US states, accusing Meta of violating federal and state privacy laws concerning children. The states are seeking billions of dollars from Meta and demanding changes to Instagram and Facebook, such as eliminating \"like\" counts and infinite scroll.",
  "summary": "A court has heard claims Meta intentionally hooked a generation of children on Facebook and Instagram, as the biggest legal challenge faced by the social media platform began. A jury in Oakland, California will spend the next six weeks wading through claims by top attorneys from several US states and lawyers for the social media […] The post Meta hooked children on Facebook and Instagram, US…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}