Zuckerberg testifies in social media addiction trial

February 20, 2026

TL;DR

Mark Zuckerberg testified in a trial where a plaintiff claims Instagram caused her anxiety, depression, and body dysmorphia.
Internal Meta documents presented in court suggested that average time spent on Instagram was considered a "milestone" for success.
Documents also indicated a strategy to "bring them in as tweens" to succeed with teens, and showed significant usage of Instagram by 10-12 year olds in the US.
Zuckerberg stated it's "very difficult" to prevent under-13s from lying about their age, as Instagram only began requiring dates of birth in 2019.
Meta's lawyers argued Instagram features do not cause mental health issues and that the plaintiff's problems stemmed from a troubled childhood.
Meta's own researchers found that teens who felt bad about their bodies were shown more "eating disorder adjacent content" on Instagram.
The lawsuit occurs amidst broader regulatory pushes for social media companies, with some European countries planning bans for under-15s.
A Pew Research survey found nearly half of US teens feel social media use has a "mostly negative" impact on their mental health.

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