Did most state attorneys general – including our own Lynn Fitch – sell out child safety for a $17 billion settlement with Meta, owner of Facebook and Instagram? Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier thinks so.
"The payouts are peanuts compared to the profound harm Meta's profit-driven addictive features inflicted on kids, and a slap on the wrist for a trillion-dollar corp that'll pay more to lawyers than to states," Uthmeier posted on X. “We’re not going to bend over and capitulate,” he told CNBC. Additionally, parents of impacted children told the New York Times the settlement wasn't enough.
AGs representing 47 states including Mississippi agreed to the deal. Texas largely went along but negotiated its own $1 billion settlement, and New Mexico had already won $942 million in its case.
The settlement came together fast after New Mexico's win and a California court ruling that Meta, Snap, TikTok and YouTube couldn't shield themselves under Section 230 — a 1996 federal law section that exempted internet platforms from liability as they were getting started.
A separate trial in California brought by Tennessee, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey seeking $200 billion in damages for consumer-protection and child-privacy violations was about to begin. The Ninth Circuit rejected Meta's last-minute bid for dismissal on August 10.
Suddenly, Meta wanted to talk about platform changes and money. Other states with their own multi-billion-dollar lawsuits joined negotiations with the four litigants. "For the state attorneys general in the room, the offer was intriguing," the Times reported. Talks had dragged for months with little progress. Almost overnight, the 47 AGs agreed to the deal.
Only Florida held out. Interestingly, the four states suing for $200 billion settled along with 43 others for a total of only $17 billion. Mississippi gets at least $189 million from that.
Meta will pay 70% of the total right away. The rest comes due only if TikTok and YouTube adopt similar restrictions on users under 18.
Those restrictions include: a two-hour daily limit on Instagram and Facebook for ages 13-17, with prompts to pause every 15 minutes to block “endless scrolling;” blocking access from midnight to 6 a.m.; silencing notifications on school days from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.; parental options to turn off algorithmic feeds and autoplay; hidden like and reaction counts on teen posts; and more. States must spend their funds on youth online safety and mental health programs.
The deal lands as Europe moves toward banning social media entirely for children under 16.
Already controversy has arisen over how platforms will verify each user's age – see "Settlement for Suckers?" on Jackson Jambalaya.
Will this settlement really protect children? See tobacco settlement results.
"I am against those who prophesy false dreams" — Jeremiah 23:32
Bill Crawford is an author and syndicated columnist from Jackson.
