Tech companies could soon deal with several lawsuits filed by parents who may see that social media addiction harms their children if a new California bill passes in the Legislature.
Assembly members Jordan Cunningham, a Republican, and Buffy Wicks, a Democrat, have sponsored a bipartisan proposal, dubbed the Social Media Platform Duty to Children Act, that would allow the filing of lawsuits against social media companies, especially if they are aware of the harmful effects of their platform to kids.
Under the proposal, parents can sue sites like Snapchat, TikTok, or Meta, Facebook's parent company, to name a few. They can claim liabilities of up to $250,000 per child per year in a specific case or $1,000 per child per year in a class-action lawsuit. The University of San Diego is also backing the bill under its Children's Advocacy Institute, which has established the standards for age-appropriate steps for social media giants to adopt on their platforms so that it will not promote social media addiction in children.
Products Marketed for Kids Must Be Safe
In an interview with Los Angeles Times, Cunningham said that it's high time social media companies should be serious about making sure that their products are safe before marketing these to children. The lawmaker said safeguards like lawsuits had been set in place for tangible products sold to kids, such as toys and bedding items, but there is no such thing for social media use.
Many social media platforms operate in California, including TikTok, based in Culver City; Snapchat, based in Santa Monica; and Meta, based in Menlo Park in Palo Alto.
While Snapchat has not yet released a statement about the proposed bill, representatives of TikTok relayed that they will review the said legislature. The company, however, reiterated that they had introduced features to protect younger users from social media addiction. The company also said that their platform gives parents access to manage their children's screen time.
It comes as TikTok is currently under investigation by the office of California Attorney General Rob Bonta amid complaints that the platform is harmful to children. Reports cited that Bonta's investigation will look into the design, operation, and promotion of TikTok towards minors.
Lawsuits Underway in Ohio and Connecticut
In November 2021, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost filed a lawsuit against Meta and alleged that it had misled the public over the effects of its products on the users. In January 2022, a mother in Connecticut also sued Meta and Snapchat for the death of her 11-year-old daughter.
Mom Tammy Rodriguez claimed that her daughter, Selena Rodriguez, plunged into sleep deprivation, depression, eating disorders, and self-harm as she developed an addiction to Instagram and Snapchat. Tammy said her daughter was treated for mental health many times and even got help from an outpatient therapist before taking her own life. The outpatient therapist told Tammy that she has never seen a patient so addicted to social media as much as Selena, per Business Insider.
