Meta Accused of Ignoring Internal Warnings About Instagram's Harm to Youth Mental Health

The dangers of social media for youth mental health continue to draw global scrutiny, with Meta Platforms facing a fresh legal challenge in the United States. In a trial in Nashville, lawyers for the state of Tennessee accused the tech giant of prioritising profits over the safety of young users by ignoring internal research on the harmful effects of Instagram.

During opening statements, state attorneys argued that Meta’s own researchers had warned that features such as autoplay, notifications, and infinite scroll were designed to keep teenagers compulsively engaged on the platform. The court heard that internal documents from 2017 showed product managers knew these features were “fundamentally at odds with user well-being” and could trigger eating disorders, depression, and self-harm, yet the company failed to act on the warnings.

Paul Quinn, representing the state, told jurors that Meta understood the neuroscience behind addiction but chose to exploit it to maximise advertising revenue from young users. The lawsuit, filed by Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti, seeks financial penalties and a court order requiring Meta to alter Instagram’s features to make the platform safer for minors.

Meta’s legal team countered that the company has been transparent about the risks and has developed tools to help limit problematic usage. Defence lawyer Kevin Huff argued that protecting teens online is a shared responsibility and that Meta has actively worked to empower parents and teachers with safety features. The trial is the second state-level case to reach a jury, following a verdict in New Mexico earlier this year that resulted in a US$375 million penalty against the company.