Meta and YouTube must pay millions in damages to a 20-year-old woman after a jury decided the social media giant and video streamer designed their platforms to hook young users without concern for their well being. The California jury's decision Wednesday in a first-of-its-kind lawsuit could influence the outcome of thousands of similar lawsuits accusing social media companies of deliberately causing harm. The plaintiff, known by her initials KGM, testified at trial that she became addicted to social media as a child and that this addiction exacerbated her mental health struggles. After more than 40 hours of deliberations, a majority of jurors agreed and awarded her $3 million in damages. Jurors later recommended an additional $3 million in punitive damages after deciding the companies acted with malice, oppression or fraud in harming children with their platforms. The judge has final say over how much damages are awarded. It's the second verdict against Meta this week, after a jury in New Mexico determined the company harms children's mental health and safety, in violation of state law. Meta, the parent of Instagram and Facebook, and Google-owned YouTube issued statements disagreeing with the verdict and vowed to explore their legal options, which include appeals. Google spokesperson Jose Castañeda said the verdict misrepresents YouTube "which is a responsibly built streaming platform, not a social media site." A Meta spokesperson said teen mental health is "profoundly complex and cannot be linked to a single app." Peter Ormerod, an associate professor of law at Villanova University, called the verdict "a momentous development" but noted it's just "one step in a much longer saga" and that he doesn't expect to see large changes to the platforms... Read More