The founder and CEO of Meta, Mark Zuckerberg, defended the social media platforms his company owns in testimony before a Los Angeles County court jury this week. Zuckerberg said that Instagram, the platform targeted in a trial over social media addiction, is not inherently addictive, but that it offers a service that is valuable, so “people will want to use it more.”

The case, filed by a Californian in 2023 who alleges she became addicted to Instagram from an early age and suffered harmful effects, is one of several high-profile suits that could shake up the social media landscape for companies including YouTube, TikTok and Snap, among others.

In his testimony, Zuckerberg was asked not only whether his company is aware of the effect its social networks have on children, but also about whether its age restrictions are adequate. Zuckerberg revealed that as early as 2018, he reached out to Apple CEO Tim Cook seeking to discuss “the well-being of kids and teens” using their companies’ technology. Apple didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

During his testimony, Zuckerberg repeatedly said that statements he’s made have been mischaracterized and that social networks can be useful in connecting people. He said Meta has worked to build age restrictions and guidelines, but that it can’t always prevent younger people from accessing its services.

Instagram introduced teen accounts in 2024 with DM protections and PG-13-style restrictions to limit the content that appears on them. 

At one point during the trial, Zuckerberg was asked if Meta should try to help young people.

“I think a reasonable company should try to help a person that uses its services,” he said.

The focus was also on Zuckerberg himself, and whether his demeanor in public appearances is considered “robotic,” requiring media coaching to give warmer answers.

“I’m actually well known to be sort of bad at this,” he acknowledged.

Social networks as ‘digital casinos’

Another line of inquiry Zuckerberg pushed back on was whether social media networks are intentionally designed to be addictive, like “digital casinos” that trap people into spending as much time as possible interacting and viewing content.

Natalie Bazarova, professor of communication at Cornell University and head of its Social Media Lab, says this is the crux of this trial and others that companies like Meta are facing. 

“The core question is whether companies intentionally designed these products to harm young people by exploiting natural biases toward instant gratification and engineering design features that supply effortless, continuous reinforcement, thus hijacking self-control to encourage compulsive use,” Bazarova said.

Whether companies are held accountable may be determined by whether they are truly “creating meaningful experiences, as platforms often claim, or if it comes at the cost of known risks to users’ well-being, as some internal documents appear to suggest,” she said.

Tech’s hold on kids is an issue

Tech industry watchers are following this trial closely because a judgment against Meta could open the floodgates to litigation against other tech companies at a time when lawmakers are closely scrutinizing the effects of social media and artificial intelligence on teens and younger children.

Sexual and violent content is only the tip of the iceberg as far as dangers children face from these technologies; other concerns include contact from potential predators, mental-health threats from bullying and harassment, and the physiological effects of too much time in front of screens.

One way some tech companies are addressing complaints or trying to get ahead of regulations and legal action is by adding age-estimation or age-verification technology, as Roblox, Discord and YouTube have recently done.

That has not stopped countries such as Australia from banning social media entirely for children, or Spain from placing stricter age restrictions on its use than the US.