Zuckerberg Defends Meta Against Addiction Claims in Teen Safety Trial

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg testified in a New Mexico courtroom that he opposed censoring social media platforms, despite internal research showing negative impacts on young users. The state alleges Meta violated consumer protection laws by failing to disclose known dangers of social media addiction and child exploitation on Facebook and Instagram.

SANTA FE, N.M. — A New Mexico jury this week viewed testimony from Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg as part of a landmark lawsuit examining how social media platforms affect teenagers and children, with the Facebook and Instagram creator defending his company’s approach to content moderation.

State prosecutors claim Meta broke consumer protection regulations by withholding information about social media addiction risks and child sexual exploitation occurring on their platforms. Meta’s legal team counters that the company openly discusses potential risks, actively removes dangerous content, and recognizes that harmful material sometimes bypasses their security measures.

During recorded testimony from last year, state attorneys presented Zuckerberg with internal company documents and user messages dating to Facebook’s early days in 2008, highlighting concerns about “problematic” and compulsive social media usage.

“Over the past 15 years, users of your products have repeatedly told your company and you personally that they find the products to be addictive, that’s true isn’t it?” asked Previn Warren, representing New Mexico.

Zuckerberg challenged the terminology used by prosecutors.

“I think people sometimes use that word colloquially,” he responded. “That’s not what we’re trying to do with the products, and it’s not how I think they work.”

The Meta chief added that he wanted to “make sure that we can understand so we can improve the products and make them better for people in ways that they want.”

Zuckerberg acknowledged that he previously established objectives for staff members to boost the duration teenagers spent using the platform as part of efforts to grow business income and expand user numbers.

“Yes, I think we focused on time spent as one of the major engagement goals,” Zuckerberg stated. “Sometime during 2017 and beyond — for at this point most of the last 10 years — we’ve focused on other metrics.”

The questioning also examined Zuckerberg’s choice to remove a short-lived Instagram prohibition on cosmetic filters that altered users’ appearances in ways that appeared to encourage plastic surgery.

“I care a lot about not cracking down on the ways that people can express themselves and there’s, like, always been a lot of pressure to do that and censor our services,” Zuckerberg explained. “I didn’t find any of the anecdotal examples that people used to be convincing that it was actually clear evidence that this was going to be harmful.”

The testimony footage was presented Wednesday during the fourth week of civil proceedings against Meta, which also manages WhatsApp.

On Tuesday, the New Mexico jury viewed separate video testimony where prosecutors questioned Instagram executive Adam Mosseri about Meta’s safety protocols, profit priorities, and platform features. They also inquired about policies for younger users that might lead to unwelcome contact with adults.

The New Mexico lawsuit and a concurrent trial in Los Angeles may influence the direction of thousands of similar legal cases targeting social media corporations.

Zuckerberg provided testimony last month in Los Angeles regarding young people’s Instagram usage and has faced congressional questioning about youth safety across Meta’s platforms.

During his 2024 congressional appearance, he offered apologies to families who believed their tragedies resulted from social media harm. While he told parents he was “sorry for everything you have all been through,” he avoided accepting direct accountability for their experiences.