The Connetquot School District has joined hundreds of other school districts around the nation in a California lawsuit against social media companies like Meta (formerly Facebook), TikTok, and Snap, among others.
The original lawsuit, filed in 2022 in the California federal court, alleges that extensive exposure to social media has caused harm to students’ mental health.
Due to the large number of claims and the similarity of the allegations, the cases brought forth by the lawsuit are being heard in Judicial Counsel Coordination Proceedings, or JCCP.
When the court system in California receives a large number of lawsuits that allege similar facts against the same defendants, plaintiffs have a right to request to consolidate their claims before a single court.
The social media JCCP hearings were consolidated in the Superior Court of Los Angeles in 2022 and assigned to Judge Carolyn Kuhl.
As of October 2023, these proceedings included 350 cases filed by families and 250 cases filed by school districts throughout California.
The social media companies filed a motion asking the judge to dismiss the lawsuits, citing immunity from liability under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act and the First Amendment.
This statute, according to social media companies, provides online publishers liability protection for content posted by third parties.
Plaintiffs argue that social media companies are liable because of the way their products are designed.
As many as 42 attorneys general and hundreds of school districts nationwide have filed suit against social media companies.
Lawsuits allege that when young users of the social media platforms are exposed to negative content, that the following behaviors arise:
In addition, the following mental health issues are also alleged to form:
On June 20, Gov. Kathy Hochul signed legislation S.7694A/A.8148A, which “establishes the SAFE For Kids Act to put first-in-the-nation restrictions on addictive social media feeds for minors,” according to a statement from the governor’s office.
Touted as “the nation’s most stringent protections to safeguard kids on social media” by bill supporters, attorney general Letitia James and Hochul, the legislation is meant to address the ongoing efforts for youth mental health crises.
The legislation enables the New York Child Data Protection Act to prohibit online sites from collecting, using, sharing or selling personal data of anyone under the age of 18, unless they receive informed consent or unless doing so is strictly necessary for the purpose of the website.
“Young people across the nation are facing a mental health crisis fueled by addictive social media feeds—and New York is leading the way with a new model for addressing the crisis and protecting our kids,” said Hochul. “By reining in addictive feeds and shielding kids’ personal data, we’ll provide a safer digital environment, give parents more peace of mind, and create a brighter future for young people across New York.”
New York State Attorney General Letitia James said, “Addictive feeds are getting our kids hooked on social media and hurting their mental health, and families are counting on us to help address this crisis. The legislation signed by Gov. Hochul today will make New York the national leader in addressing the youth mental health crisis and an example for other states to follow.”
Senate majority leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said, “As we navigate the threats social media poses to our youth in today’s ever-evolving technological landscape, I’m proud that, under my leadership, the Senate majority created the Senate’s Internet and Technology Committee to focus on these issues.”
Addictive feeds, or algorithmically driven feeds, facilitate “unhealthy levels of social media use,” according to Hochul.
The legislation will require social media companies to restrict addictive feeds on their platforms for users under 18.
Unless parental consent is granted, users under 18 will not receive addictive feeds.
Under this law, kids may still use social media, e.g., they can continue to search for specific topics of interest or subscribe to creators, but will not be subject to algorithmically driven feeds that “promote unhealthy levels of engagement.”
The law will also prohibit social media platforms from sending notifications regarding addictive feeds to minors from 12 to 6 a.m. without parental consent.
The law will authorize the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) to enforce the law and ensure compliance, including by seeking civil penalties of up to $5,000 per violation, among other remedies.
Social media companies will be tasked with establishing an acceptable age verification and parent consent methods, to be determined by the office of the Attorney General as part of a rulemaking process.
Office of Mental Health Commissioner Dr. Ann Sullivan said, “New York State is once again leading the way by adopting laws to protect our youth from the negative impact of social media and the harmful algorithms they use on their platforms.”
Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence executive director Kelli Owens said, “We know setting our kids and teens up for online success can help foster healthy minds and healthy relationships in the future, both online and in the real world.”
