Gary & Shannon: "Social Media Is The New Big Tobacco" | KFI AM 640

"According to the Transparency Coalition, approximately 1,600 plaintiffs - including individual families, school districts, and state attorneys general - are part of the coordinated legal proceedings. The cases allege that addictive platform features like infinite scroll, autoplay video, and algorithmic recommendations caused depression, eating disorders, self-harm, and other mental health issues in children."

"Because so many lawsuits have been filed, judges coordinated them into a judicial council coordination proceeding (JCCP) - a legal structure used in large-scale product liability cases. Twenty-two lawsuits have been selected as "bellwether" trials, meaning they serve as test cases to gauge jury reactions before the remaining cases proceed."

"The trials are being compared to the landmark Big Tobacco cases of the 1990s, in which cigarette makers were found to have hidden health risks and targeted minors. Those cases resulted in billions of dollars in damages and sweeping marketing restrictions."

Major social media companies face coordinated litigation across the United States involving approximately 1,600 plaintiffs, including families, school districts, and state attorneys general. The lawsuits claim that platforms deliberately incorporated addictive features such as infinite scroll, autoplay video, and algorithmic recommendations to maximize user engagement, resulting in depression, eating disorders, self-harm, and other mental health issues among children. The cases have been consolidated into a judicial council coordination proceeding, with twenty-two lawsuits designated as bellwether trials to test jury reactions before remaining cases proceed. Two trials commenced in February, with a third expected in June. These proceedings are compared to the landmark tobacco litigation of the 1990s, which resulted in substantial damages and marketing restrictions.

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