Social media trial, Zuckerberg testifies in court today

The CEO of Meta, Mark Zuckerbergwill take the witness stand today in a process considered a watershedwhich could determine whether i big dei social have consciously “hooked” i minors to theirs platforms for profit.

The 41 year old at the head of Metawhich he owns Facebook, Instagram e WhatsAppis the most awaited witness in trial underway in California which focuses on damage to the mental health of young people and on the creation of dependence on the part of social platforms like Facebook and Instagram. The case could create a legal precedent on the topic for thousands of cases filed by American families against the main ones platforms on social media.

This is Zuckerberg’s first time in court

Although Zuckerberg has already testified before the US Congress, this is the first time he has directly faced a jury in court to answer allegations about the safety of minors on his platforms. Zuckerberg’s controversial reputation has loomed over the proceedings since jury selection, when Meta’s lawyers worked to exclude California residents deemed too hostile toward the Facebook founder. The 12 Los Angeles jurors will hear testimony until the end of March to decide whether Google-owned YouTube and Meta’s Instagram bear any responsibility for the mental health problems suffered by Kaley GM, a 20-year-old California resident who has been a regular user of social media since childhood.

The case of Kaley GM and compulsive use

Kaley GM started using YouTube at 6, Instagram at 11, then TikTok and Snapchat. The trial will determine whether Google and Meta deliberately designed their platforms to encourage compulsive use among young people, harming their mental health.

Precedent for thousands of lawsuits

The case, along with two similar trials scheduled for Los Angeles this summer, aims to set a standard for resolving thousands of lawsuits that accuse social media of fueling an epidemic of depression, anxiety, eating disorders and suicide among young people. The lawsuit focuses exclusively on app design, algorithms and personalization features, as US law grants platforms near-total immunity from liability for user-generated content.