Meta faces Tennessee trial over claims Instagram was designed to be addictive

Tennessee’s trial is the second to test claims in a lawsuit brought by a state against Meta

Published: July 21, 2026 12:31 pm IST Source: Reuters

Meta Platforms faces trial in Tennessee on Monday over the state’s claims that Instagram’s design is to blame for a youth mental-health crisis. The case is one of several trials in the coming weeks testing allegations that the company’s social media platforms were intentionally built to be addictive.

Tennessee accuses Meta of violating the state’s consumer protection law by knowingly designing a product that drives teens to compulsive use and by misleading the public about its safety.

Key Allegations

The lawsuit, filed by Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti’s office, claims Meta:

• Failed to disclose extensive internal research showing Instagram could harm teens
• Continued offering features it knew were dangerous without warning users
• Ignored repeated warnings from its own employees about research indicating negative impacts on teens
• Declined to fund efforts to minimize those harms
• Made misleading public statements about the amount of harmful content on its platforms

The state alleges that founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg was repeatedly warned by Meta employees about the research but did not act.

What Tennessee Is Seeking

Skrmetti is pursuing:

• Financial penalties under Tennessee’s consumer protection law, which levies fines of up to $1,000 per violation
• A court order directing Instagram to modify aspects of the platform deemed harmful to teens’ mental health

The case focuses on features including autoplay, Instagram Reels videos, notifications, and designs that cause content to disappear after a certain period.

Meta’s Response

A Meta spokesperson said in a statement on Friday that the company has built-in controls to protect the hundreds of thousands of Tennessee teens who use social media daily.

“We want them to do that in a protected space, which is why we’ve spent a decade building safe, age-appropriate defaults for teens alongside simple tools for parents to set the right boundaries for their family.”

Meta has also argued that the state’s claims of harm are based on content posted by Instagram users, and that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act shields the company from liability for third-party content.

Trial Details

• Jury selection begins Monday in Nashville for the first phase of the trial
• The jury will decide whether Meta violated Tennessee law
• If the jury finds a violation, the case moves to a second phase where the judge will weigh monetary penalties and potential changes to Instagram
• The trial is slated to last seven weeks

Broader Legal Context

This trial is scheduled to overlap with at least two other trials against Meta in California courts, as the company faces thousands of lawsuits over similar claims in both state and federal court.

• Nearly every state in the U.S. has filed claims against Meta over its platforms’ alleged impact on children
• A trial over claims brought by 29 states — alleging Meta violated federal law protecting data collected from children, along with additional state law claims from California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey — is scheduled to begin August 18 in federal court in California
• Separately, Meta and other social media companies face thousands of lawsuits brought by individuals and school districts
• A trial against Meta and Snapchat parent Snap Inc. over claims brought by a 15-year-old boy from Florida (known as R.K.C.), who alleges social media damaged his mental health, is scheduled to begin July 27