Overview
- Records released in late May show the four companies reached one-time settlements that together total roughly $27 million, with Meta paying $9 million, Snap $8 million, TikTok $8 million and YouTube just over $2 million.
- The deals were reached on May 21 and disclosed publicly in late May, and they halted the planned June bellwether trial in federal court in Oakland.
- YouTube’s agreement includes teacher training for classroom use of its video product, but the settlements contain no admission of liability and do not require broad platform changes.
- Plaintiffs say they will keep pursuing about 1,200 consolidated school-district claims and thousands of other suits, and recent plaintiff jury wins in Los Angeles and New Mexico helped push negotiations.
- Breathitt County sought more than $60 million to fund a 15-year mental health program and said staff spent large amounts of time managing social media harms, which illustrates how districts say platform design choices have burdened schools and students.