{
  "id": 2187513,
  "title": "Meta on trial: Did Instagram, Facebook ‘hook’ children? 29 US states take it to court",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/20/meta-on-trial-did-instagram-facebook-hook-children-29-us-states-take",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-08-20T17:40:01.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Indian Express",
    "slug": "the-indian-express",
    "url": "https://indianexpress.com/article/world/meta-us-states-lawsuit-trial-teen-mental-health-child-safety-10842377/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "29 US states are accusing social media giant Meta of knowingly designing Facebook and Instagram to hook children and keep them engaged on the platforms, potentially leading to mental health issues like anxiety, depression and suicide. The trial in federal court in Oakland, California, could result in significant financial penalties for Meta. The lawsuit, first filed in 2023, accuses the company of downplaying the risks associated with its platforms' features, including infinite scrolling, algorithmic recommendations, push notifications, likes and filters. The states argue that Meta deliberately targeted younger users with features that exploit their sensitivity to social feedback and developing impulse control. Internal Meta documents and employee communications are central to the case, with prosecutors citing an internal study titled \"The young ones are the best ones\" and an internal statement that \"Teens are hooked despite how it makes them feel. Instagram is addictive.\" Meta denies these allegations, maintaining that its safety mechanisms have evolved in response to child safety concerns, citing features like restrictions on private messaging and warning tools for searches related to self-harm. However, Meta's former safety engineer, Arturo Béjar, testified that the company initially took a \"don't ask, don't tell\" approach to children under 13 and that its safety features, like \"Take a Break,\" were designed to fail as they required user activation.",
  "summary": null,
  "key_points": [
    "29 US states sue Meta for allegedly designing Facebook and Instagram to addict children.",
    "Internal Meta documents reveal targeting of younger users with addictive features.",
    "Meta denies allegations, claims safety mechanisms have evolved to address child concerns."
  ],
  "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."
}