Expert testifies that Meta’s social media features are ‘addictive’ drugs in the case
Former U.S. Attorney for the State of Utah Brett Tolman discusses high tech in court about claims that social media is addictive in ‘The Bottom Line.’
An expert witness in the case filed by the Attorney General of New Mexico Raúl Torrez against Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, testified that the design features of social media applications are addictive, likening them to a “drug,” especially when they affect young people.
The landmark case, in which Torrez accused Meta of exposing children to “sexual exploitation and psychological harm” through collaboration on the platform, continued in a New Mexico court on Tuesday with witness testimony.
Dr. Anna Lembke, a psychiatrist and Stanford professor, told the court that after reviewing thousands of pages of internal documents and reviewing research from social media companies, she determined that the features designed in social media are addictive.
The mother-of-four, who is a senior executive in charge of addiction programs at the university, defined addiction as “the persistent, compulsive use of a substance or behavior despite harm to oneself or others.”
Lembke argued that Meta uses “powerful” features, such as Instagram’s “infinite scroll” and personalized algorithms, to stimulate the release of dopamine that “interferes with human communication.”
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An expert witness testified Tuesday that social media apps like Instagram are addictive, likening them to a “drug,” especially when it comes to teenagers. (Getty Images / Getty Images)
With social media addiction, Lembke said downstream harms include depression, anxiety, eating disorders, self-harm, loneliness, suicidal thoughts, cyberbullying and sexual abuse. He added, children are often attacked by anger, screaming, threats to harm themselves and insomnia.
After reviewing the Meta documents, Lembke pointed out that the technology giant is aware of social media addiction and has used the term “Problematic Internet Use” internally as a synonym, indicating that the company “works hard not to call it an addiction” or acknowledge the magnitude of the issue.
Lembke testified that people will not be able to recognize that they are addicted to social media and will need a skilled therapist to diagnose it.
He explained that a therapist who is not trained in the field of addiction may spend more time talking about other things, or looking for underlying causes, than focusing on the addictive behavior.
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New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez accuses Meta of exposing children to “sexual exploitation and psychological harm” by interacting on the platform. (Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Accountable Tech / Getty Images)
After finding people with social media addiction, Lembke said they identify frequency of use, loss of control, cravings and withdrawal, consequences and risk factors.
Although teenagers are most at risk because of their developing brains, Lembke said anyone can become addicted with enough exposure.
He added that social media can be as emotionally effective as other addictive substances, especially for young people.
“A child who grew up in a family without feeling supported or insulted, it would be natural for him to turn to humility,” said Lembke.
On Monday, security researcher Meta also warned the administration that there could be more than half a million incidents of child sexual exploitation every day on social media.
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It is unclear whether Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg will testify at the trial. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)
Citing Meta’s internal documents, Lembke said the company acknowledged that women are at a greater risk of being exposed to social media.
She added that through her clinical work, boys are more inclined to play, while girls experience “negative social comparison,” body dysmorphia driven by filters, and an increased need for validation and approval after looking at ideal bodies and faces that girls feel unable to measure up to.
He also criticized Instagram for providing ‘wireless access,’ noting that kids often lie about their age during the ‘invalid age verification’ process, and that its parental controls are too complicated for even educated parents to navigate.
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Among other addictive features of the Instagram app, Lembke described the notifications tool as a powerful feature that ‘triggers’ or creates desires to return to the platform. He added that the 24-hour time limit on news creates “fear of missing out,” or “FOMO,” which forces users to check the platform more often.
Adam Moseri, the head of Instagram, is expected to be questioned in court on Wednesday.
Eric Revell of Fox News contributed to this report.
