SV lawsuit against social media companies moves forward
A federal lawsuit Seneca Valley School District is participating in will partially move forward against social media companies.
Matt Hoffman, solicitor for Seneca Valley, announced at a school board meeting Monday, Nov. 18, a motion to dismiss filed by the defendant companies had been granted in part and denied in part.
In April 2023, the Seneca Valley school board authorized district participation in a federal lawsuit against social media companies that own apps frequented by students, including TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat. The class-action suit includes several other schools in Western Pennsylvania and dozens across the nation.
“Relatively good news that the essential core of some of the claims brought by school districts against social media companies remain viable and will be further litigated,” Hoffman said.
The companies challenged the districts’ claims based on a provision of federal law that provides immunity to social media companies from legal liability for content posted by third parties.
Hoffman said the court found certain aspects of the claim would be barred from trial, including “failing to institute blocks during certain times of the day, and allowing private content that can be adverse to adolescents.”
However, the suit claims that the companies fail “to provide meaningful age verification processes,” to implement effective parental controls and to limit usage that could create an addiction.
Hoffman wasn’t surprised by the challenge or its outcome.
“The district has, like many districts, incurred costs addressing the mental health impacts of social media usage on adolescents. It creates disciplinary issues; it creates mental health issues. So to a certain extent, we’re talking monetary, for that to help offset costs incurred,” Hoffman said, adding that it also will hopefully compel the social media sites to mitigate or prevent adverse impacts on adolescents.
Hoffman said the next stage of the suit will involve expert witness discovery, which may last until late spring.
