Mayor Michelle Wu announced that the city of Boston, on behalf of Boston Public Schools (BPS), has filed a lawsuit against Meta and other social media companies, including TikTok, Snapchat, and YouTube, alleging that these platforms deliberately target minors with addictive design features that harm children’s mental health.
Boston’s lawsuit was filed in federal court in the Northern District of California and alleges that the social media firms have created a youth mental health crisis that constitutes a public nuisance, and that their conduct has been negligent.
Boston’s case will be consolidated with the complaints filed by more than 1,500 school districts across the country.
“Social media companies have evidence of the harm they are causing to our kids by designing platforms that keep them hooked in endless scrolling and monetizing engagement at the expense of their mental health,” said Mayor Wu. “Boston is taking legal action to protect children and youth and hold these companies accountable.”
Boston Public Schools Superintendent Mary Skipper pointed to research she said makes it clear that social media has had a negative impact on students’ well-being while benefiting the media companies.
Over the past decade, Boston schools have seen a “significant increase in student mental health needs directly tied to social media use,” according to the city. For example, in 2021, 44% of BPS high school students reported persistent sadness, up from 27% in 2015. (Boston Public Health Commission, 2024).
To meet students’ needs, BPS has expanded its mental health resources in recent years. According to the city, BPS now employs 240 social workers and 105 school psychologists, as opposed to six social workers and 48 school psychologists in 2007. BPS also leads a behavioral health collaborative that brings together more than 25 community mental health organizations to provide direct services to Boston students.
Meta, Google, Snapchat and TikTok are facing thousands of lawsuits in state and federal courts tying their designs to a mental health crisis for teens and young people.
The social media companies have argued that Section 230 of the federal Communications Decency Act and the First Amendment grant them immunity from liability for the content they provide and thus also shield them from these state lawsuits. The companies maintain that their design features are the same as content.
The city’s case is similar to cases being pursued by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts against Meta, TikTok and other social media companies. Earlier this year court rulings by Massachusetts courts rejected the companies’ arguments that they are shielded from such lawsuits by federal law and the First Amendment, meaning both Meta and TikTok must face the charges in state courts.
In April, a California jury awarded $6 million in damages to a woman who claimed she became addicted to Meta’s Instagram and YouTube as a child. Also, in March, a New Mexico jury hit Meta with $375 million in civil penalties after finding that Meta violated the state’s consumer protection law by misleading users about the safety of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp and of enabling child sexual exploitation on those platforms.
Topics Lawsuits
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