CVN screenshot of plaintiff attorney Tom Cartmell delivering his opening statement
Nashville, TN - A Tennessee state court jury heard opening statements on July 27th in a closely watched trial over claims from the state’s attorney general that Instagram’s parent company Meta ignored risks of harm to minors from the popular photo-sharing social media platform, and the full trial is being webcast and recorded gavel-to-gavel by Courtroom View Network.
Attorneys for the office of Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti allege internal researchers at Meta knew certain features on Instagram, such as constant notifications and endless scrolling, directly contributed to mental health issues like depression and eating disorders among adolescents but failed to take any corrective action.
The state seeks financial penalties from Meta and an enforceable order to modify or disable the features in question, but attorneys for Meta argued the company shared their internal findings with the public, and that Instagram doesn’t utilize any features that make it unique compared to myriad other highly-trafficked social media websites.
During opening statements before Chancellor David Perkins, attorney Tom Cartmell of Wagstaff & Cartmell, LLP - a Missouri-based firm brought on by the AG’s office - told the Davidson County jury features like Instagram’s “ding” notifications trigger dopamine responses that directly impact developing adolescent brains.
Cartmell accused Meta of knowing exactly how this process worked and seeing it as an opportunity to increase subscription numbers as opposed to a public health risk, a claim he told jurors he would back up during trial with internal documentation from Meta describing features like ding notifications and instant scrolling as “inherently at odds with well-being.”
Representing Meta, defense attorney Kevin Huff of Kellogg Hansen Todd Figel & Frederick told jurors documents like the ones referenced by the plaintiffs show the company was actually directly engaged with the issue of teen user safety, which Huff said led to development of tools to help limit unhealthy Instagram use.
CVN screenshot of defense attorney Kevin Huff delivering his opening statement
Huff also argued issues like teen depression result from an extremely broad range of individual and societal factors and urged jurors to reject arguments that one particular website plays such an outsized role while also insisting testimony from Meta executives would show they took the issue of teen mental health seriously.
The trial is drawing nationwide scrutiny due to similar pending litigation filed by state attorneys general across the country.
At a previous trial this year also webcast and recorded by CVN a New Mexico jury ordered Meta to pay $375 million for harm to minors, while a state court judge continues to consider a potential additional award after a subsequent bench trial to determine public nuisance mitigation damages.
The current trial is expected to take roughly seven weeks to complete and CVN’s live and on-demand coverage, including all witness testimony, will continue for the duration of the proceedings.
Email David Siegel at dsiegel@cvn.com
