Tech giants like Meta, the company that owns social media platforms Facebook and Instagram, could face steep penalties if they are found to have caused harm to children if a bill that passed the legislature Friday is signed into law.
CNN spoke with three mothers who say social media played a role in their children’s deaths about Meta’s $18 billion settlement of a multistate lawsuit alleging the company intentionally designed addictive platforms that harmed young people’s mental health. As part of the settlement with states, Meta agreed to make sweeping changes to Facebook and Instagram and let an independent auditor evaluate how it’s implementing those changes. CNN’s Clare Duffy reports.
Smoking used to be everywhere, the way Facebook, TikTok, Snap, YouTube and Instagram are now. Society decided to break the habit, but it took a long time.
Meta has agreed to pay up to $18 billion over the next decade, divided among nearly every state, to settle claims its platforms like Instagram are addictive and harmful to kids. That's tonight on "Elizabeth Vargas Reports." This episode originally aired on Aug 26, 2026. Anchor Elizabeth Vargas delivers the biggest stories, without bias or opinion. Watch "Elizabeth Vargas Reports" every weeknight at 7p/6C on NewsNation. #VargasReports NewsNation is your source for fact-based, unbiased news for all Americans.
Meta’s settlement is far from perfect, but it’s better than nothing.
LANSING, MI — Local mom Gina Muldoon, who sources confirmed posts to Facebook an average of 137 times each day, shared her concerns on a Facebook mom's group that kids these days might be addicted to social media.
Across the country, parents described feeling some validation after the landmark $17.1 billion settlement. But they also felt skeptical that much of anything will change.
Meta has agreed to a settlement to pay up to $17.1 billion to dozens of states over claims that it built addictive and harmful products for children and then misled the public about them. As part of the landmark settlement, Meta will enforce stronger child safety measures, including time limits and muted notifications during school hours. The Morning Joe panel discusses the latest with California Attorney General Rob Bonta, whose office was part of the bipartisan coalition of Attorneys General that investigated Instagram’s impact on young people, which formed the basis of the initial lawsuit.
In “The Anxious Generation,” he laid out the evils of social media for kids. The landmark Meta settlement seems to agree.
The tech giant’s landmark deal with states over teen use of social media may cost the company less than expected. It may hurt rivals more.