Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, appeared in court on Wednesday as part of a landmark trial examining whether major social media platforms are intentionally addictive and harmful to young users.
Mosseri, who has led Instagram for eight years and is one of Meta’s top executives, arrived at a Los Angeles courtroom to testify in a case focused on the mental health effects of Instagram and YouTube. He is expected to be questioned throughout the day.
The trial, which began on Monday, is set to run for six weeks and is being closely watched as a test of whether tech companies can be held legally responsible for alleged harm caused to young people through social media use.
Lawyers representing Meta — the parent company of Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp — have argued that the lead plaintiff, identified as K.M.G., was affected by factors unrelated to Instagram. They maintain that her mental health struggles cannot be directly attributed to the platform.
Outside the courthouse, Mosseri was met by a group of onlookers that included protesters and parents who say their children were harmed by what they describe as social media addiction. Some had travelled long distances to be present.
One of them was Mariano Janin from London, who held a photo of his daughter, Mia. She died by suicide in 2021 at the age of 14. Janin said he came to show support for stricter limits on social media use for young people.
“If they changed their business model, it would be different,” he said. “They should protect kids. They have the technology; they have the funds.”
The case is one of thousands filed across the United States by families, school districts, and state prosecutors seeking to hold tech firms accountable for the impact of social media on children and teenagers.
Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg and YouTube CEO Neal Mohan are among other high-profile figures expected to testify during the trial. Snapchat and TikTok reached settlements before the case went to court.
