FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — Tech giants Meta and YouTube were found liable in a landmark case, accused of intentionally addicting a young woman and injuring her mental health.
A California jury found the platforms to be negligent and dangerous.
“A lot of kids do have an addiction and it’s not just the kids, but adults too are addicted to the phones,” says Clovis High School mom Solla Reyes.
“It’s not surprising with so many features on our phones.”
Wendy Maldonado is the co-owner of Fresno Ultimate Martial Arts and a mom of two pre-teen sons herself. She believes parents can be the difference and help their child focus on life beyond the screen.
“At the end of the day, we have full control; someone’s paying for the plan, right? And most likely it’s going to be parents,” she says. “Have that talk with your teen, your child, yes, it’s great to have one in case of emergencies, but at the same time, still be aware of your surroundings, common sense use.
Students at Bullard High School are required to lock their phones in one of these ‘Yonder’ pouches.
Principal Armen Torigian tells Action News he’s seen the addiction firsthand.
“We just saw kids literally running over to a cinder block wall and trying to break open the pouch because of the pure addiction,” he says.
The school is one of the first in the Valley to implement the pouch.
Now in their fourth year of use, school officials say they’ve noticed major changes.
“Grades started going up, discipline started going down. Discipline went down a lot,” Torigian says.
A 2024 CDC study found that 77% of U.S. high school students use social media at least several times a day.
The more frequent users saw persistent feelings of sadness and hopelessness.
“We’re giving kids a cell phone and their minds aren’t fully developed at the end of the day,” said Torigian. “Us adults are asking kids how to use a cell phone and how to use social media, that’s a problem.”
Both Meta and YouTube say they plan to appeal the verdict.
Snapchat and TikTok were also named in the lawsuit but settled prior to trial without admitting wrongdoing.
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