New York City officials have filed a lawsuit accusing social media companies Meta (Facebook, Instagram, Threads, WhatsApp), ByteDance (TikTok), Alphabet (Google and YouTube), Snap (Snapchat), and other online platforms of fueling a mental health crisis among children and intentionally turning the youth into screen addicts.
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On Wednesday (October 8), officials filed a 327-page complaint in Manhattan federal court. It seeks damages from the aforementioned social media platform companies. The defendants are accused of gross negligence and causing a public nuisance.
Furthermore, the complaint also claims defendants designed their platforms to ”exploit the psychology and neurophysiology of youth” and spark addictive use in pursuit of profit.
Additionally, the court docs continue to claim that 77.3% of New York City high school students and 82.1% of girls have admitted to spending three or more hours a day on “screen time.” This includes TV, computers, and smartphones, all of which contributes to loss of sleep and chronic school absences.
While reacting to the new lawsuit, Google spokesperson Jose Castaneda called the allegations against YouTube “simply not true.” Castaneda claims this is in part due to the platform being considered a streaming service and not a social network for users to interact with friends.
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New York City Blames Social Media For Increase In Deadly ‘Subway Surfing’ Trend
Additionally, the city also blamed social media for an increase in the “subway surfing” trend. The act sees them riding atop or off the sides of moving train cars. At least 16 subway surfers have died since 2023. This includes the two girls, aged 12 and 13, who passed this month.
The city said, “Defendants should be held to account for the harms their conduct has inflicted. As it stands now, (the) plaintiffs are left to abate the nuisance and foot the bill.”
Citywide officials filed the lawsuit with local governments, school districts, healthcare systems; plus other individuals who are similarly pursing 2,050 other lawsuits nationwide, including Oakland, California federal court.
Among the nationwide complaints, New York City is among the largest plaintiffs, boasting a population of 8.48 million. This includes about 1.8 million under the age of 18.
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