Meta settlement to send send hundreds of millions to North Carolina, used to support youth mental health

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) –Meta has agreed to a nearly $18 billion settlement resolving a landmark lawsuit accusing the company of designing its social media platforms to be addictive and harmful to children.

The settlement involves nearly 30 states that accused Meta of concealing research about teen social media addiction and using features on platforms such as Instagram and Facebook that allegedly encouraged young people to spend more time online and contributed to harm to their mental health.

North Carolina is expected to receive a minimum of $451 million under the agreement, with the amount potentially reaching as much as $650 million, making it one of the largest settlements in state history.

Under the agreement, North Carolina will receive at least $45 million per year for the next 10 years.

Attorney General Jeff Jackson said he hopes the money will be used to address the impact of social media on young people, particularly through mental health resources.

“That money is going to go to the state legislature and what we think the state legislature should do with the money is spend it to address the harm that was caused, in other words, it should go to youth mental health,” Jackson said.

The settlement also requires Meta to make changes aimed at reducing social media use among users 17 and younger.

Those changes include a two-hour daily time limit that can only be disabled by parents, an end to push notifications during school hours and restrictions on features such as like counts.

The agreement also includes controls intended to limit content that could negatively affect young people’s self-image, including beauty filters.

Jackson said the changes will give parents greater control over what their children see and interact with online while providing additional protections for young users.