Digital Dilemma: Social Media Addiction
Today’s teens are the first generation to grow up entirely in the digital age, with social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, and TikTok being a big part of their lives. They’re tech-savvy and fluent in internet culture. Over the past decade, America’s youth have engaged with social media products at an exponential rate.
These platforms are incredibly popular, with billions of users worldwide. Unfortunately, they have hidden the negative impacts on young users’ mental health. The impacts of social media addiction and the responsibility of companies for their products go beyond individual cases—it influences whole communities and schools.
In 2022, we started filing personal injury lawsuits across the country for teenagers affected by social media addiction. Our firm also represents numerous school districts across the country in claims of nuisance and negligence resulting from social media’s harmful impact on education systems.
Proceedings: MDL & JCCP
The MDL (a consolidated federal litigation based in Oakland, CA) and the JCCP (a consolidated California state court litigation based in Los Angeles) are national proceedings consisting of thousands of personal injury, school district, local government entity, and tribal plaintiffs alleging to have suffered harm from Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, and YouTube. Beasley Allen attorney Joseph VanZandt serves as Co-Lead Counsel in the JCCP and as federal-state liaison in the MDL. Both litigations have conducted extensive discovery into the social media Defendants’ conduct and are preparing for trials. The first personal injury bellwether trial in the JCCP is set to begin in November 2025, with eight additional trials to follow. MDL trials are expected to begin in 2026.
Beasley Allen is committed to obtaining justice for our clients and to demanding accountability and reform among social media companies. Our goal is to protect future generations from the unchecked influence of digital platforms that prioritize engagement over well-being by advocating for:
- Independent oversight
- Safer platform design standards
- Transparency around algorithmic impact
- Warnings and parental controls
Algorithms, Addiction, and Mental Health
A report from the Pew Research Center found that nearly half of U.S. teens are online “almost constantly.” This surge in usage is a result of social media companies working hard to keep users engaged. Unfortunately, many families are facing serious problems due to social media’s impact on their children’s mental health. Issues such as anxiety, depression, eating disorders, and even suicide have been linked to spending too much time on these platforms.
Social media addiction can also lead to various other mental health issues. For example, some teens may develop body dysmorphia, which is an obsession with perceived flaws in their appearance. Additionally, social media can contribute to conditions like ADD/ADHD, making it hard for young people to focus or concentrate. In more serious cases, the pressure from social media can lead to self-harm and thoughts of suicide. These challenges reveal the urgent need to address the impact of social media on the mental well-being of young users.
Meet Our Social Media Attorneys
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