By Jonathan Stempel
(Reuters) – A federal judge said Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:) CEO Mark Zuckerberg is not personally liable in 25 lawsuits accusing his company of addicting children to social media. U.S. District Judge Yvonne González Rogers (NYSE:) in Oakland, California, on Thursday rejected allegations that Zuckerberg directed Meta's efforts to hide from children the serious mental health risks of using facebook and instagram. The plaintiffs called Meta's billionaire co-founder the “guiding spirit” behind the alleged concealment efforts, saying he ignored repeated internal warnings about the risks and publicly downplayed them.
But the judge found a lack of details about what Zuckerberg did wrong and said “control of corporate activity alone is insufficient” to establish liability. Its decision does not affect related claims against Meta itself.
The plaintiffs filed lawsuits under the laws of 13 US states: Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Maryland, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin.
Previn Warren, a Motley Rice partner representing the plaintiffs, said Friday that his clients will continue to gather evidence “to uncover the truth about how Big tech has consciously prioritized profits over the safety of our children.”
The 25 lawsuits are among several hundred children, their families and school districts seeking damages from Meta, Alphabet's Google (NASDAQ: ), ByteDance's TikTok and Snap's Snapchat for social media addiction.
Dozens of U.S. state attorneys general are pursuing similar cases against Meta, linking its social media platforms to anxiety, depression, insomnia and interference with education and daily life.
The case is In re Social Media Adolescent Addiction/Personal Injury Products Litigation, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No. 22-md-03047.
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