Bereaved Families Sue Meta and Google Over Social Media Harm to Children
Bereaved British families are suing Meta, Google, and ByteDance in a California court case, alleging their social media platforms deliberately addict and harm children. The plaintiffs claim the platforms contributed to mental-health crises and children's deaths, including cases where young users reportedly encountered harmful online challenges.
What happened
Bereaved British families filed a landmark court case in California against Meta (Instagram's parent company), Google (YouTube), and ByteDance (TikTok's parent), claiming the platforms deliberately addict and harm children.
One case involves Ellen Roome, whose 14-year-old son Jools Sweeney died at home in Cheltenham in 2022, reportedly while attempting an online challenge. Roome has been seeking data from TikTok and ByteDance to understand what happened.
Reported impact
Families claim the social media platforms contributed to mental-health crises among young users and resulted in children's deaths.
Governance controls
Roome is campaigning for 'Jools' Law,' a proposed amendment to United Kingdom legislation that would require automatic preservation of a child's social-media data after their death.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.