2026年3月24日 / 美国东部时间下午6:46 / CBS/美联社
新墨西哥州陪审团周二裁定，社交媒体巨头Meta对儿童心理健康有害，违反了该州消费者保护法。
这一具有里程碑意义的裁决是在近七周的审判后作出的。陪审员支持州检察官的观点，他们认为Meta——旗下拥有Instagram、Facebook和WhatsApp——将利润置于安全之上。陪审团认定Meta违反了该州《不公平行为法》的部分条款，指控该公司隐瞒了其平台上儿童性剥削危险及其对儿童心理健康影响的已知情况。
陪审团同意有关Meta发布虚假或误导性陈述的指控，也同意Meta从事了”不合理”的商业行为，不公平地利用了儿童的脆弱性和缺乏经验。
陪审员认定存在数千起违规行为，每起违规行为单独计算，处罚金额为3.75亿美元。
Meta的律师表示，该公司披露了风险，并努力清除有害内容和体验，同时承认有些不良材料可能逃过其安全网。
Meta发言人安迪·斯通周二晚间在一份声明中告诉哥伦比亚广播公司新闻：”我们尊重地不同意这一裁决，并将提起上诉。我们努力确保人们在我们的平台上安全，并且清楚识别和移除不良行为者或有害内容面临的挑战。我们将继续积极捍卫自己，我们对自己在保护青少年上网方面的记录仍然充满信心。”
新墨西哥州的案件是一系列涉及社交媒体平台及其对儿童影响的诉讼中首批进入审判阶段的案件之一。
2月9日开始的审判是针对Meta的众多诉讼中的一起，同时学区和立法者希望对课堂上使用智能手机施加更多限制。
在南加州联邦法院，一个陪审团已被隔离审议超过一周，讨论Meta和YouTube是否应对其平台上对儿童造成的伤害承担责任，这是三个可能为数千起类似诉讼定下基调的代表性法庭案件之一。
Meta首席执行官马克·扎克伯格上月在洛杉矶的审判中作证，告诉陪审员，虽然13岁以下用户不允许使用Instagram，但执行这一规则很困难，因为”有相当多的人谎报年龄使用我们的服务”。
此外，超过40个州的总检察长已对Meta提起诉讼，声称该公司通过刻意设计Instagram和Facebook的成瘾性功能，助长了年轻人的心理健康危机。
新墨西哥州的案件依赖于该州的一项卧底调查，特工创建了社交媒体账户冒充儿童，记录性引诱行为以及Meta的应对措施。
2026年3月4日，新墨西哥州圣达菲，Meta首席执行官马克·扎克伯格的证词录音被播放给陪审员。 吉姆·韦伯/《圣达菲新墨西哥人报》通过美联社，Pool
这起诉讼由新墨西哥州总检察长劳尔·托雷斯于2023年提起，还称Meta没有充分披露或解决社交媒体成瘾的危险。Meta并未承认存在社交媒体成瘾，但在审判中的高管承认存在”问题性使用”，并表示他们希望人们对自己在Meta平台上花费的时间感到满意。
Meta律师凯文·赫夫在总结陈词中告诉陪审员：”证据表明，Meta投资安全不仅是因为这是正确的事情，也是因为这对业务有利。Meta设计应用程序是为了帮助人们与朋友和家人建立联系，而不是试图连接掠夺者。”
科技公司根据《美国通信规范法》第230条（一项已有30年历史的条款）以及《第一修正案》的保护，被免除了对其社交媒体平台上发布内容的责任。
新墨西哥州检察官表示，Meta仍应对其通过复杂算法推广有害儿童内容的行为负责，这些算法会扩散可能对儿童有害的材料。
检察官琳达·辛格说：”我们知道，输出的目的是吸引孩子并增加他们的使用时间。Meta做出的这个选择对孩子产生了深远的负面影响。”
审判的第二阶段预计可能在5月无陪审团情况下由法官审理，将决定Meta是否造成公共滋扰，并可能被要求改变运营方式并支付补救费用。
新墨西哥州审判审查了大量与儿童安全相关的Meta内部通信和报告。陪审员还听取了Meta高管、平台工程师、离职的告密者、精神病学专家和科技安全顾问的证词。
陪审团还听取了当地公立学校教育工作者的证词，他们谈到了与社交媒体相关的干扰，包括针对儿童的敲诈勒索计划。
州副检察长詹姆斯·格雷森在总结陈词中告诉陪审团：”这个案件关乎世界上最大的科技公司之一利用新墨西哥青少年。”
陪审团由圣达菲县（包括政治进步的州首府城市）的居民组成。
在做出裁决时，陪审团考虑了扎克伯格、Instagram负责人亚当·莫塞里和Meta全球安全主管安提戈涅·戴维斯关于平台安全的具体声明是否误导了社交媒体用户。
在审议过程中，陪审团使用了检察官提出的指控清单，包括Meta未能披露其对执行13岁以下用户禁令问题的了解、社交媒体上有关青少年自杀内容的普遍性、Meta算法在优先处理耸人听闻或有害内容方面的作用等。
New Mexico jury finds Meta violated consumer protection law over child exploitation claims
March 24, 2026 / 6:46 PM EDT / CBS/AP
A New Mexico jury found Tuesday that social media conglomerate Meta is harmful to children’s mental health and in violation of state consumer protection law.
The landmark decision comes after a nearly seven-week trial. Jurors sided with state prosecutors who argued that Meta — which owns Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp — prioritized profits over safety. The jury determined Meta violated parts of the state’s Unfair Practices Act on accusations the company hid what it knew about the dangers of child sexual exploitation on its platforms and impacts on child mental health.
The jury agreed with allegations that Meta made false or misleading statements and also agreed that Meta engaged in “unconscionable” trade practices that unfairly took advantage of the vulnerabilities of and inexperience of children.
Jurors found there were thousands of violations, each counting separately toward a penalty of $375 million.
Attorneys for Meta said the company discloses risks and makes efforts to weed out harmful content and experiences, while acknowledging that some bad material gets through its safety net.
“We respectfully disagree with the verdict and will appeal,” Meta spokesperson Andy Stone told CBS News in a statement Tuesday evening. “We work hard to keep people safe on our platforms and are clear about the challenges of identifying and removing bad actors or harmful content. We will continue to defend ourselves vigorously, and we remain confident in our record of protecting teens online.”
New Mexico’s case was among the first to reach trial in a wave of litigation involving social media platforms and their impacts on children.
The trial that started Feb. 9 is one of the first in a torrent of lawsuits against Meta and comes as school districts and legislators want more restrictions on the use of smartphones in classrooms.
In a federal court in Southern California, a jury has been sequestered in deliberations for more than a week about whether Meta and YouTube should be liable for harms caused to children on their platforms, in one of three bellwether court cases that could set the course for thousands of similar lawsuits.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg testified in the Los Angeles trial last month, telling jurors that while users under 13 are not allowed on Instagram, it is a difficult rule to enforce because there are “a meaningful number of people who lie about their age to use our services.”
In addition, more than 40 state attorneys general have filed lawsuits against Meta, claiming it’s contributing to a mental health crisis among young people by deliberately designing Instagram and Facebook features that are addictive.
New Mexico’s case relied on a state undercover investigation where agents created social media accounts posing as children to document sexual solicitations and Meta’s response.
A recording of Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s deposition is played for the jurors on March 4, 2026, in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Jim Weber/Santa Fe New Mexican via AP, Pool
The lawsuit, filed in 2023 by New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez, also says Meta hasn’t fully disclosed or addressed the dangers of social media addiction. Meta hasn’t agreed that social media addiction exists, but executives at trial acknowledged “problematic use” and say they want people to feel good about the time they spend on Meta’s platforms.
“Evidence shows not only that Meta invests in safety because it’s the right thing to do but because it is good for business,” Meta attorney Kevin Huff told jurors in closing arguments. “Meta designs its apps to help people connect with friends and family, not to try to connect predators.”
Tech companies have been protected from liability for material posted on their social media platforms under Section 230, a 30-year-old provision of the U.S. Communications Decency Act, as well as a First Amendment shield.
New Mexico prosecutors say Meta still should be responsible for its role in pushing out that content through complex algorithms that proliferate material that can be harmful for children.
“We know the output is meant to be engagement and time spent for kids,” prosecution attorney Linda Singer said. “That choice that Meta made has profound negative impacts on kids.”
A slated second phase of the trial, possibly in May before a judge with no jury, would determine whether Meta created a public nuisance and may be ordered to change course and pay for remedies.
The New Mexico trial examined a raft of Meta’s internal correspondence and reports related to child safety. Jurors also heard testimony from Meta executives, platform engineers, whistleblowers who left the company, psychiatric experts and tech-safety consultants.
The jury also heard testimony from local public school educators who struggled with disruptions linked to social media, including sextortion schemes targeting children.
“What this case is about is one of the biggest tech companies in the world taking advantage of New Mexico teens,” state Chief Deputy Attorney General James Grayson told the jury in closing arguments.
The jury was assembled from residents of Santa Fe County, including the politically progressive state capital city.
In reaching a verdict, it considered whether social media users were misled by specific statements about platform safety by Zuckerberg, Instagram head Adam Mosseri and Meta global head of safety Antigone Davis.
In deliberations, the jury used a checklist of allegations from prosecutors that Meta failed to disclose what it knew about problems with enforcing its ban on users under 13, the prevalence of social media content about teen suicide, the role of Meta algorithms in prioritizing sensational or harmful content, and more.