CHARLOTTE — The Charlotte-Mecklenburg School Board is the latest school district to file a lawsuit against multiple social media giants following reports that they are negatively impacting students’ mental health. .
The commission on Friday warned Meta (owner of Facebook and Instagram), Google (owner of YouTube), ByteDance (owner of TikTok), and Snap Inc. (owner of Snapchat) that their products are The lawsuit was filed on the grounds that it was causing harm to students. , harming the mental health of young people and creating a burden on school districts,” according to Friday’s news release.
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“The Board’s decision to take legal action reflects our unwavering commitment to the well-being of our students and ensures that social media companies are held accountable for their contributions to the mental health issues faced by CMS students.” It’s about making sure we’re held accountable,” said board chair Elise Dashew. statement.
Channel 9 obtained a copy of the lawsuit, which is nearly 200 pages long. This study uses research to outline how social media algorithms influence students’ perceptions of appearance. They also claim that companies use tactics to get students hooked on their products, such as screenshots of YouTube playlists and Instagram feeds.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools face challenges providing mental health resources to students “as rates of depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation rise,” Charlotte School Board members said. said in a statement.
The board is represented by at least four law firms, according to court documents. Several of these companies are also representing other districts in a large multidistrict lawsuit filed on March 10th.
Several South Carolina districts, including Clover and Fort Mill, are also suing the tech giant, Channel 9 previously reported.
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Channel 9 reached out to all four companies for comment on Friday.
So far, the only company that has responded to Channel 9’s request is Google.
“Protecting children across our platforms has always been core to our work. In collaboration with child development experts, we have created age-appropriate content for children and families on YouTube. We built an experience that gave parents robust controls,” said Google spokesperson Jose Castañeda. “The allegations in this complaint are simply not true.”
>>Check out our county-by-county guide for mental health resources. At this link.
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