It’s been an odd sight on school board agendas over the past month as local districts move forward with litigation against some of the biggest tech companies in the country.
In recent weeks, the Elkhart, Concord, Penn-Harris-Madison and Mishawaka school systems have all voted to explore filing suits claiming that social media platforms like Tik Tok, Snapchat and Instagram use intentionally addictive algorithms to increase usage and don’t have enough parental control options.
One lawsuit filed in California says the social media sites “wield unmatched, highly concentrated technology in pursuit of profit and are knowingly creating this unprecedented mental health crisis.”
In an interview with WVPE, Mishawaka Superintendent Theodore Stevens said that the district hasn’t yet done a full survey of how social media impacts students in Mishawaka schools, but he believes it’s been harmful.
"I believe most of our administrators would say yes," Stevens said. "Has there ever been a situation at school where students have been depressed, had increased anxiety or have other social-related mental health issues as a result of social media? Again, fairly confident our administrators would say yes to that.”
It’s hard to get an exact number, but media reports suggest that just this year, hundreds of school districts have moved to file lawsuits, many using the same handful of law firms.
Interestingly enough, this isn’t the first time hundreds of school districts have filed nearly identical lawsuits against a major corporation. In 2022, the e-cigarette maker Juul paid out over $1.5 billion in individual settlements.
In total, 86 school districts in Indiana were involved in proceedings against the vaping company. Stevens said Mishawaka stands to receive just under $30,000 for participating in the suit and most districts in Indiana will receive similar ammounts.
The same law firm that represented Michiana districts in the Juul cases is again leading the way on the tech lawsuits. Stevens said the familiarity with the Kansas City-based Wagstaff and Cartmell made him comfortable signing up for the recent round of suits, as did the firm’s fee structure which stipulates districts only pay legal fees out of money awarded in a settlement.
“If this were a situation where the school corporation would have to pay on the front end, we likely would not be participating,” Stevens said.
If Mishawaka were to receive a settlement from the social media companies, Stevens said the funds would go toward some manner of education about the dangers of social media.
However, the chances of getting a settlement from the social media companies will prove more difficult according to Asaf Lubin, a professor specializing in social media and torts at Indiana University’s Maurer School of Law.
Lubin said the lawsuits against the social media platforms follow the same gameplan as the Juul suits, but there are a few key differences.
First, federal law shields social media platforms from liability stemming from third-party content, meaning a site like Instagram can’t be sued if a one user bullies another user on that platform.
Lubin said the tech companies will first try to get the lawsuits thrown out on the basis of that statute, referred to as Sec. 230 in U.S. legal code.
If the cases move past that initial hurdle, Lubin foresees challenges for districts proving that the various tech companies knew their platforms would lead to adverse mental health effects and for districts proving what specific harms they’ve suffered.
“They will need to show the same kind of direct cost they’ve incurred as the result of the introduction of social media in the life of youth,” Lubin said. “Obviously there are harms, but the ability to articulate a direct causal link — it’s just harder.”
In statements provided to other media outlets, Google calls the allegations contained in the various lawsuits “simply not true” while Meta, the new name of Facebook has said it’s invested heavily in finding and removing posts that can be harmful to children and other users.
It will likely be months if not years before the case is settled, decided by a jury or thrown out, but with little risk on the part of school districts, more are sure to sign up in the coming months.
