Somewhere out there, Mark Zuckerberg is probably doing his best "I’m not even mad, I’m impressed" face. Why? Because on Friday, a judge ruled that Zuck can’t be held personally liable for the alleged social media addiction of your kids. Fun for him, bad news for the parents who were hoping to pin their children’s TikTok-level dopamine addictions on the world’s most famous lizard person.

In short, the lawsuits—25 of them, to be exact—accused Zuckerberg of personally ignoring warnings about the mental health risks of Facebook and Instagram. The Karens plaintiffs argued that Zuckerberg knew all along that his platforms were like digital crack to a generation of pre-teens, but he chose to sweep those warnings under the rug.

But here’s the thing: U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers wasn’t buying it. She threw out the claims, saying the plaintiffs didn’t have enough receipts to prove that Zuckerberg himself was responsible for all those doomscrolling-induced dopamine hits. Translation: just because Zuck signs the checks doesn’t mean he’s on the hook for everything Meta does. Control of corporate activity alone isn’t enough to establish personal liability, according to the judge.

(Source: Benzinga) 

Now ICYMI, this whole fiasco started when a group of parents, presumably off a Netflix binge of The Social Dilemma, decided to take their pitchforks to court. The argument? That Zuckerberg, who runs Meta—the parent company of Facebook and Instagram—knew social media was wrecking their kids’ mental health but decided profits were worth more than a few therapy bills. They were basically hoping to make him the poster boy for what happens when you let middle schoolers roam wild on social media.

(Source: Giphy) 

Unfortunately for them though, Judge Rogers didn’t think the case was strong enough to make Zuck personally responsible. She pointed out that while Zuckerberg may have known about the risks, the plaintiffs didn’t provide any solid proof that he actively participated in covering them up. Meaning, just because you’re the CEO doesn’t mean you’re personally shoving Instagram filters down the throats of 12-year-olds.

(Source: Courthouse News) 

Now with that said, while Zuckerberg was probably having himself a day on his mega yacht over the weekend, it’s worth noting that Meta, the company, isn’t exactly off the hook. Meta itself is still facing hundreds of similar lawsuits from schools, state governments, and parents who are all claiming the company prioritized profits over the mental health of young users. And let’s not forget that Google, Snap, and TikTok are dealing with their own legal messes on the same front. Spoiler alert: Apparently, social media isn’t just for cat memes anymore. 

But for now, Zuck gets to walk away from this round of lawsuits with his hands clean. And the plaintiffs? Well, they’re definitely not waving the white flat yet. For instance, Previn Warren, the lawyer representing the parents (presumably only to get his hands on a fat settlement), says they’ll keep digging for evidence to prove Big Tech knew exactly what it was doing when it turned our kids into screen-addicted zombies. 

In the meantime though, Zuckerberg can breathe a sigh of relief. Sure, Meta’s got its fair share of legal headaches, but dodging personal liability is a big win for the CEO. After all, it’s not every day you manage to shake off accusations that your company is basically a gateway drug for pre-teens.

As for the parents still looking to pin their kids' social media spirals on Zuckerberg? They might want to shift their focus. Maybe it’s time to sue AOL for inventing AIM all those years ago—or better yet, MySpace. Surely Tom’s still out there somewhere. Either way, one thing's for sure: the battle over social media addiction is far from over, and Zuck’s legal team has plenty of billable hours left to burn LOL.

In the end, do what you will with this information and as always stay safe and stay frosty, friends! Until next time…

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Stocks.News holds positions in Meta, Google, Netflix, and Snap as mentioned in the article.