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In Santa Fe, New Mexico, a pivotal trial is set to begin, casting a spotlight on the issue of child sexual exploitation via social media platforms and examining if Meta misrepresented the safety of its services. Opening statements are scheduled for Monday, marking the start of this significant legal proceeding.
This trial is the first of its kind initiated by state prosecutors amid a wave of lawsuits targeting major social media companies, including Meta, for their alleged role in endangering children. The proceedings promise to delve deeply into the presence of explicit content online and its impact on young users.
New Mexico’s Attorney General, Raúl Torrez, filed the lawsuit against Meta in 2023. His team meticulously constructed the case by creating social media profiles posing as children, subsequently documenting instances of sexual solicitations and Meta’s responses. Meta owns well-known platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.
Prosecutors plan to present evidence and testimonies demonstrating how Meta’s algorithms and platform features allegedly lure and addict young users, inadvertently fostering an environment conducive to predators preying on children. They claim Meta neglected to disclose its awareness of these adverse effects, thus breaching state consumer protection laws, and additionally accuse the company of creating a public nuisance.
The lawsuit states, “Meta knowingly exposes children to the twin dangers of sexual exploitation and mental health harm,” attributing this alleged misconduct to the company’s pursuit of profit.
Meta denies any legal violations and says prosecutors are cherry-picking evidence to make sensationalist arguments. On Sunday, Meta called the state’s investigation “ethically compromised” in its use of child photos on proxy accounts, delays in reporting child sexual abuse material and the disposal of data from devices used in the investigation, in social media posts on X by company spokesperson Andy Stone.
The company says lawsuits are attempting to place the blame for teen mental health struggles on social media companies in a way that oversimplifies matters. Meta says it has a longstanding commitment to supporting young people, highlighting a steady addition of account settings and tools — including safety features that give teens more information about the person they’re chatting with and content restrictions based on PG-13 movie ratings.
“For over a decade, we’ve listened to parents, worked with experts and law enforcement, and conducted in-depth research to understand the issues that matter most,” the company said in a statement. “We’re proud of the progress we’ve made.”
It’s unclear whether Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg will testify at trial. New Mexico limits the ability to compel out-of-state witnesses to testify in person, while prosecutors can present testimony by Zuckerberg from a deposition.
Personal opinions of Zuckerberg and evolving attitudes toward social media loomed over jury selection from a pool of more than 200 residents of Santa Fe County, including several educators, young adults who grew up with social media and others who never signed up.
“Quite frankly, he’s the tech bro making money off of all of us,” one person said of Zuckerberg.
An attorney for the state warned that there would be “very sensitive and very explicit material discussed in terms of safety to children” during the trial.
More than 40 state attorneys general have filed lawsuits against Meta, claiming it is deliberately designing features that addict children to its platforms. The majority filed their lawsuits in federal court, and New Mexico’s case against Meta is the first to reach trial.
Opening statements have been postponed in a bellwether trial underway in California against social video companies, including Meta’s Instagram and Google’s YouTube, that focuses on a 19-year-old who claims her use of social media from an early age addicted her to technology and exacerbated depression and suicidal thoughts. TikTok and Snapchat parent company Snap Inc. settled claims in the case.
Torrez, a Democrat seeking reelection this year to a second term, has urged Meta to implement more effective age verification and remove bad actors from its platform. He’s also seeking changes to algorithms that can serve up harmful material and criticizing end-to-end privacy encryption that can prevent the monitoring of communications with children for safety.