{"id":237687,"date":"2026-03-26T15:44:14","date_gmt":"2026-03-26T15:44:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/237687\/"},"modified":"2026-03-26T15:44:14","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T15:44:14","slug":"meta-google-lose-3-million-social-media-case","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/237687\/","title":{"rendered":"Meta, Google lose $3 million social media case"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AA child on their tablet in Monrovia on Sept. 15, 2021. Photo by Pablo Unzueta for CalMatters<\/p>\n

A California jury directed Google and Meta to cough up a total of $3 million Wednesday in a landmark verdict<\/a> in favor of\u00a0a young plaintiff whose family claimed that the companies knowingly made their social media platforms addictive to teens.<\/p>\n

As CalMatters\u2019 Colin Lecher explains, the case is one of a spate of lawsuits that seek to hold the makers of sites such as YouTube and Facebook accountable for allegedly designing their products to be addictive, despite knowing the damage they could inflict on users\u2019 mental health.<\/p>\n

Both companies said they disagreed with the verdict and Google said it plans to appeal.<\/p>\n

Jos\u00e9 Casta\u00f1eda, a Google spokesperson, in a statement: \u201cThis case misunderstands YouTube, which is a responsibly built streaming platform, not a social media site.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Still pending: Hundreds of other personal injury suits filed by schools, attorneys general and others alleging the recklessness of tech companies. In New Mexico, a jury recently found Meta liable for \u201cunfair and deceptive\u201d practices under state law, and ordered the company to pay $375 million in damages.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A case currently playing out in a federal court based in California also had a key hearing this week. Defendants, which include Google and Meta but also TikTok and Snap, argued for a judge to dismiss the case, and a decision on that motion will likely come in the next few weeks.<\/p>\n

Read more<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Be part of the conversations driving California forward at the CalMatters Ideas Festival on May 21 in Sacramento. Get your tickets now<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Join CalMatters and the UC Student and Policy Center on April 23 in Sacramento for a conversation on the future of voting in California. Experts in election administration and public policy will examine where the state\u2019s voting systems are strong, where they face vulnerabilities and what it will take to safeguard the fundamental right to vote for future generations. Register today<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Other Stories You Should Know<\/p>\n

The state is being weird about moving toxic substances\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"PeoplePedestrians and vehicles pass through Gayley Avenue at UCLA on March 17, 2026. Photo by Lauren Justice for CalMatters<\/p>\n

The state wants to change the rules around transporting hazardous waste, but isn\u2019t exactly making it easy<\/a> for the public to understand why, writes CalMatters\u2019 Alejandra Reyes-Velarde.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Last year, the Department of Toxic Substances Control proposed relaxing some tracking rules<\/a> for companies, as well as the University of California system, when they transport toxic waste within their own properties and along some public roads. The department added hundreds of pages to its rulemaking record that included federal road accident reports \u2014 such as crashes, spills and other accidents.<\/p>\n

But when it came time for the public to weigh in on the proposal in January, the department directed the public to a broken link to access the documents. To see the documents, people had to submit a public records request.<\/p>\n

Though a spokesperson said that the department is following state law, Angela Johnson Meszaros, an Earthjustice attorney, said the move was \u201cbaffling.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more<\/a>.<\/p>\n

CA police aren\u2019t investigating these rapes<\/p>\n

\"APeople walk out the main entrance of the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego on Feb. 20, 2026. Photo by Adriana Heldiz, CalMatters<\/p>\n

Last year, staff members reported seven rape allegations out of Otay Mesa immigration detention center, a San Diego County facility run by the for-profit company CoreCivic. But law enforcement isn\u2019t investigating any of those cases<\/a>, report CalMatters\u2019 Wendy Fry and Nigel Duara.<\/p>\n

CoreCivic operates the facility under a contract with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The facility houses nearly 1,500 federal immigration detainees, most of whom have not been convicted of a crime and are in custody awaiting hearings.<\/p>\n

In a statement, CoreCivic said Otay Mesa staff conducted an administrative investigation of each allegation, but they did not conduct a criminal investigation because it is not a law enforcement agency.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But the San Diego County Sheriff\u2019s department said it isn\u2019t investigating the cases either. Under a 2020 memorandum of understanding, it had ceded its authority to investigate allegations of criminal misconduct to CoreCivic.<\/p>\n

At a hearing Tuesday with the county\u2019s Board of Supervisors, Sheriff Kelly Martinez said her department is responsible for their own detention facilities and that investigating ones that don\u2019t belong to the county is \u201ca difficult ask.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more<\/a>.<\/p>\n

And lastly: Sewage sickens school children<\/p>\n

\"\"Farron Espinoza with her nine-year-old son, Alan Gonzalez, at Bayside Elementary School in Imperial Beach on March 19, 2026. Photo by Zo\u00eb Meyers for CalMatters<\/p>\n

Sewage pollution from the Tijuana River has led to a myriad of health issues among nearby residents, including asthma, migraines and dizziness. For school children especially, the overwhelming stench of hydrogen sulfide sometimes means days indoors or at home sick. Read more<\/a> from CalMatters\u2019 Deborah Brennan.<\/p>\n

California Voices<\/p>\n

CalMatters columnist Dan Walters: The recent uptick in state tax revenues is a welcomed bit of good news for the state budget, but big city mayors, county officials and other stakeholders still seek more money than what Gov. Gavin Newsom\u2019s proposed budget offers<\/a>.<\/p>\n

California Voices deputy editor Denise Amos: In a Q&A with the former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano discusses the incoming secretary, border security and the latest allocation of money to ICE<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Insurance companies want hospitals to agree to rates that don\u2019t keep pace with rising costs \u2014 reducing overall reimbursement rates and threatening our fiscal stability, writes Craig Wagoner<\/a>, president and CEO of Community Health System.<\/p>\n

Other things worth your time:<\/p>\n

Some stories may require a subscription to read.<\/p>\n

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Nonpartisan, independent California news for all<\/p>\n

We\u2019re CalMatters, your nonprofit and nonpartisan news guide.<\/p>\n

Our journalists are here to empower you and our mission continues to be essential.<\/p>\n

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But we can\u2019t keep doing this without support from readers like you.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Avatar\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLynn La is the newsletter writer for CalMatters, focusing on California\u2019s top political, policy and Capitol stories every weekday. She produces and curates WhatMatters, CalMatters\u2019 flagship daily newsletter…\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMore by Lynn La\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A child on their tablet in Monrovia on Sept. 15, 2021. Photo by Pablo Unzueta for CalMatters A…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":237688,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[7,9,8],"class_list":{"0":"post-237687","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-california","8":"tag-california","9":"tag-california-headlines","10":"tag-california-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/237687","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=237687"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/237687\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/237688"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=237687"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=237687"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=237687"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}