WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, The Tech Oversight Project issued the following statement after it became public that Meta requested the judge throw out the ruling in the K.G.M. trial, the first bellwether of the state social media addiction trials. After months of testimony from Meta executives like CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram Chief Adam Mosseri, a jury issued a landmark verdict finding that the company was negligent and ordered to pay damages for worsening the plaintiff’s anxiety, body dysmorphia, and depression. This was the first product liability case to go to trial that any Big Tech company has faced. YouTube was also found negligent and ordered to pay damages, and Snap and TikTok settled with the plaintiff before the trial began

“Meta’s attempts to rewrite history are an insult to young people and parents. Mark Zuckerberg and Meta’s executives are trying to gaslight an entire generation of young people into believing we are the ones to blame for anxiety, depression, and body dysmorphia and not the trillion-dollar company that paid neuroscientists and developed digital casinos delivering near-constant dopamine hits. There was a fair, impartial trial, and a jury of everyday people decided that Meta was negligent. Meta is refusing to accept this outcome because they have disdain for regular people deciding their fate – unlike politicians they can intimidate and threaten,”said Sacha Haworth, Executive Director of The Tech Oversight Project. “The only way to truly protect children and teens from Meta’s dangerous products is to pass comprehensive legislation like the Senate’s Kids Online Safety Act and the GUARD Act, which will create transparency, ensure products are safe, and hold Big Tech companies accountable for rolling out products before they are deemed safe.”