The Wake County school board is contemplating the possibility of legal action against social media companies, citing concerns that schools have been grappling with the aftermath of psychological harm inflicted by their platforms.
If Wake County proceeds with legal action, it will join numerous other school boards across the country in suing companies such as Meta, Google, ByteDance, and Snap. Already, eleven North Carolina school systems, including Charlotte-Mecklenburg, Clinton City, Cumberland, Johnston, Wilson, Union, Robeson, Moore, Wayne, Pitt, and Rockingham counties, have initiated lawsuits against these tech giants. Additionally, as of December, at least 42 state attorneys general, including North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein, have filed lawsuits.
The lawsuits leveled against social media companies contend that they have neglected to caution teenage users about the potential harms of their platforms, leading to psychological distress manifested in increased rates of eating disorders, depression, and anxiety. School boards argue that they have been compelled to redirect educational funds toward addressing children’s mental health issues.
These legal actions have been consolidated into a single national case before a federal court in Northern California, and Wake County’s potential involvement would be integrated into this broader litigation.
Although the social media companies have not yet responded to requests for comment, they have previously asserted through statements to the media that they are actively working to enhance safety measures for teenage users.
Wake County’s approach to the social media case mirrors its previous legal action against JUUL Labs and other electronic cigarette manufacturers, where the school board accused the companies of marketing to teenagers. Those lawsuits were amalgamated with similar cases nationwide and subsequently settled, with Wake schools receiving substantial financial compensation to combat teen vaping.
On Tuesday, the school board will listen to presentations from Janet Ward Black of Ward Black Law and Matthew Legg of Baird Mandalas Brockstedt and Federico, two law firms representing school districts in North Carolina and beyond. The attorneys are expected to underscore in their presentation that social media companies have engineered their products to be addictive and have inflicted distress on users, which consequently impacts schools as they strive to support students with additional resources.
