Season 14 • Episode 1105

Meta Settled a Case Over Social Media Addiction Claims. What Happens Now?

Sep 14, 2026

21:51

Mental Health Children's Health Addiction & Recovery Public Health

Episode Description

About this episode:

In August, Meta—the parent company of Instagram and Facebook—agreed to pay up to $17.1 billion to 54 states and U.S. territories over claims that it harmed children by fostering unhealthy digital habits. In this episode: An addiction researcher and an expert in adolescent mental health explain the terms of the agreement, what comes next, and what parents should take away from the larger conversation on youth social media use.

Guest:

Tamar Mendelson, PhD, MA, is a professor of Mental Health and Population, Family and Reproductive Health, as well as the director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Adolescent Health.

Johannes Thrul, PhD, MS, is an associate professor of Mental Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Host:

Lindsay Smith Rogers, MA, is the producer of the Public Health On Call podcast, an editor for Expert Insights, and the director of content strategy for the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Show links and related content:

Meta to Pay Up to $17.1 Billion in Landmark Settlement Over Social Media Addiction Claims—New York Times
Mental Health in the Scroll Age—Hopkins Bloomberg Public Health Magazine
Social Media and Youth Mental Health—Office of the Surgeon General
A College Course for Digital Detoxing—Public Health On Call (February 2026)
Social Media and Adolescent Health—Public Health On Call (February 2024)

Transcript information:

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