Exclusive | Parents who blame their kids deaths on social media celebrate Metas $17.1B settlement but say Its like losing her all over again
Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, has reached an incredible $17.1 billion settlement with 47 states that accused the tech giant of knowingly causing harm to children — and parents who blame their teens’ suicides on social media are celebrating.“It feels like vindication,” said Victoria Hinks, whose daughter, Owl, was 16 when she who took her own life in 2024.Hinks was at the US District Court for the Northern District of California, near Silicon Valley, when the settlement was announced Wednesday morning.“I feel like Owl was there.”Hinks said her daughter, who grew up in Marin County, Calif., developed such an intense addiction to Instagram and TikTok that the family took the door off her bedroom to prevent late-night scrolling.After the girl’s death, Hinks said, she opened Owl’s phone and found content related to eating disorders, depression, self-harm and suicide.
She believes this algorithmically-derived feed contributed to her daughter’s death.“I’m hoping that the settlement hurts Meta a little bit,” she said.“I hope that Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t just think that this is the cost of doing business.
It’s not all about money but, unfortunately, that’s the only language they understand.”The settlement put an end to an ongoing federal trial and saw Meta also agree to make changes to how its platforms work for minors.The company is introducing a two-hour daily time limit, turning off access to its apps at night as a default, stopping all notifications during school hours, giving parents new control mechanisms and sending a message to teens every 15 minutes of continuous use.The company is also urging “industry-wide commitments,” and specifically called on TikTok and YouTube to make similar moves.It’s still not enough for heartbroken parents.“I don’t think there are enough commas and zeros in this settlement figure — but that’s coming from me as a mom that has had over 2,000 days without my daughter,�...