Meta has reportedly shut down internal studies into the mental health impacts of Facebook and Instagram after finding evidence that the platforms negatively affected users, according to unredacted court filings obtained by Reuters. A 2020 project, dubbed “Project Mercury,” involved research with Nielsen showing that teens who deactivated the apps for a week reported lower levels of depression, anxiety, loneliness, and social comparison. Plaintiffs in the suit argue that Meta chose not to publish these findings and internally dismissed them as influenced by the “existing media narrative,” while privately acknowledging the results were valid.
The lawsuit, filed by the law firm Motley Rice on behalf of U.S. school districts, also accuses Meta of designing youth safety features to be ineffective, ignoring internal warnings about teen engagement harms, and delaying measures to prevent child predators in order to prioritize growth. Documents cited by plaintiffs indicate that users had to be caught multiple times attempting sex trafficking before removal, and that Meta staff were pressured to justify inaction. Meta spokesman Andy Stone told Reuters that the study was stopped due to methodological flaws and that the company works diligently to protect teens, asserting that its safety policies are “broadly effective.”
Plaintiffs allege that other social media companies, including TikTok, Google, and Snapchat, similarly downplayed product risks. The filings claim TikTok influenced the National PTA to publicly support its safety claims, while Google and Snapchat encouraged teen usage despite internal knowledge of potential harms. Meta has opposed fully unsealing the internal documents in court, arguing that the plaintiffs’ requests are overly broad. A hearing on the matter is scheduled for January 26 in Northern California District Court, with the case highlighting growing scrutiny over the social media industry’s treatment of young users.
