Photo courtesy of New York City Mayor’s Office
New York City is suing five social media platforms – TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat and YouTube – for harming the mental health of children across the country.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams, City Corporate Counsel Sylvia O. Hines Radix, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) Director Dr. Ashwin Vasan, and New York City Health + Hospitals (NYC H+H) President Michelle Katz Dr. David C. Banks, New York City Department of Education Secretary, holds five social media platforms (TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, and YouTube) accountable for “fueling a nationwide youth mental health crisis” announced that they would file a lawsuit. ”
The city is joining hundreds of school districts across the country in filing a lawsuit to force the tech giants to change their behavior and recover the costs of addressing the public health crisis. New York City reports spending more than $100 million annually on youth mental health programs and services.
Additionally, Mayor Adams created a new book entitled “New York City’s Role in the National Crisis of Social Media and Youth Mental Health: A Framework for Action” to hold social media companies accountable and provide education and support to young people. Announced the “Social Media Action Plan.” We survey people and their families and study the long-term effects of social media on young people.
The announcement builds on the New York City Health Commissioner’s recommendations submitted by DOHMH Director Dr. Vasan last month, which stated that “social media “Unfettered access to and use of is a public health risk.” ” The advisory includes recommendations for parents, caregivers, health care providers, educators, and policy makers on actions to take to protect children, including recommending that social media use be delayed until age 14. It is.
“Over the past decade, we have witnessed how addictive and overwhelming the online world has become, exposing children to a constant stream of harmful content and fueling a national youth mental health crisis. ” said Mayor Adams. “Our cities are built on innovation and technology, but many social media platforms end up endangering children’s mental health, fostering addiction, and encouraging risky behaviors.” It will be.”
“Today, on behalf of millions of New Yorkers, we are taking bold action to hold these companies accountable for their role in this crisis and step up efforts to address this public health danger. This lawsuit and action plan are part of a larger reckoning that will shape the lives of our young people, our city, and our society for years to come.”
“These companies chose profit over the well-being of children by intentionally designing platforms with manipulative and addictive features and using harmful algorithms targeted at young people. ” added Corporate General Counsel Hines Radix. “Social media companies must be held accountable for this illegal activity and the harm it causes to children, schools, and entire communities.”
The complaint alleges that the companies intentionally designed their platforms to manipulate children and teens into becoming addicted to social media applications with features such as: Its features include algorithms that generate feeds that keep users on the platform longer; the app’s design uses gambling-adjacent mechanics to encourage compulsive use; and By manipulating users through interactions, such as notifying users when and sending notifications when a message has been delivered, they encourage reuse of these platforms to sustain engagement.
New York City’s efforts follow a recently introduced ban specifically targeting TikTok in Virginia, which failed to gain traction and died in the state legislature this week.
