A judge recently said that the companies can't use the First Amendment or Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act to stop the lawsuit. The judge said that things like bad parental controls and not checking ages properly are not about freedom of speech. This was seen as a big win for the families. The companies say that the claims are not true and they will fight back.

Taylor, who lives in Colorado, says that they were so addicted to social media that they felt really bad when their phone was taken away. They saw pictures of people hurting themselves when they were only 11 years old and there was no warning. Taylor also had a hard time with things about body image and eating disorders. They say it felt like they were being attacked all the time. The lawyers for the families are focusing on how the platforms are made, not on individual posts or pictures. They say that the apps have things that make people addicted and hurt themselves.

Meta said that they feel bad for the families and that they care about keeping teens safe online. TikTok didn't say anything, and Google said that the claims are not true and that they work hard to protect kids on their platforms. Snapchat said that their platform is made to take away the pressure to be perfect and that they check all the things before a lot of people see them.

Taylor knows about Molly Russell, who died after seeing bad things on Instagram. Taylor feels lucky to be alive and is determined to keep going with the lawsuit. They think that the tech companies know that their platforms are hurting people, but they care more about making money. Taylor hopes that they can make social media better by winning the lawsuit and making the companies change, because they don't think the companies will do it on their own.

Original news source: ‘I was addicted to social media – now I'm suing Big Tech’ (BBC)

– News Summary
Instructions: Divide the class into small groups. Each group should read the article provided and create a brief news summary. Encourage students to focus on the main points, such as the lawsuit against technology companies, the impact on children's mental health, and the recent legal developments. Afterward, each group will present their summary to the class.
– Opinion Poll
Instructions: Create a list of statements related to the article's content, such as "Social media platforms are responsible for monitoring content that may harm children." Students will move around the room and mark whether they agree or disagree with each statement. After the poll, lead a discussion on the reasons behind their opinions.
– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Select keywords from the article such as "lawsuit," "addiction," "social media," "First Amendment," and "parental controls." Write each word on an individual slip of paper. Students will take turns drawing a word from a hat and drawing the concept on the board without writing any words or numbers. The rest of the class must guess the word based on the drawing.
– Pros and Cons
Instructions: Ask students to work in pairs and discuss the pros and cons of social media use for young people, as highlighted in the article. They should consider aspects like freedom of expression, access to information, mental health risks, and the role of technology companies. Each pair will then share their findings with the class.
– Future Predictions
Instructions: Have students imagine they are 10 years in the future and the lawsuit mentioned in the article has had a significant impact on how social media platforms operate. In pairs or small groups, students will discuss and write down their predictions about the changes that have occurred and how these changes have affected society. Share and compare the predictions as a class.

Many families in the United States are suing big technology ?, saying that they are exposing children to harmful products. One person, Taylor Little, shared their story of ? to social media, which led to suicide attempts and years of feeling very sad. Taylor calls the tech companies "big, bad monsters" who give ? and ? things to kids. The lawsuit is one of the biggest ever in Silicon Valley and is against Meta (which owns Facebook and Instagram), TikTok, Google, and Snap Inc (which owns Snapchat). The families' lawyers say that these platforms are made to be harmful. They use the case of Molly Russell, a British girl who died by ? after seeing self-harm things on social media, as an example of the dangers for teenagers. A judge recently said that the companies can't use the First Amendment or Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act to stop the lawsuit. The judge said that things like bad ? controls and not ? ages properly are not about freedom of speech. This was seen as a big win for the families. The companies say that the claims are not true and they will fight back. Taylor, who lives in Colorado, says that they were so addicted to social media that they felt really bad when their phone was ? away. They saw pictures of people hurting themselves when they were only 11 years old and there was no warning. Taylor also had a hard time with things about body ? and ? disorders. They say it felt like they were being attacked all the time. The lawyers for the families are ? on how the platforms are made, not on ? posts or pictures. They say that the apps have things that make people addicted and hurt themselves. Meta said that they feel bad for the families and that they care about keeping teens safe online. TikTok didn't say anything, and Google said that the claims are not true and that they work hard to protect kids on their platforms. Snapchat said that their platform is made to take away the ? to be perfect and that they check all the things before a lot of people see them. Taylor knows about Molly ?, who died after seeing bad things on Instagram. Taylor ? lucky to be alive and is determined to keep going with the lawsuit. They think that the tech companies know that their platforms are ? people, but they care more about making money. Taylor hopes that they can make social media better by winning the lawsuit and making the companies change, because they don't think the companies will do it on their own.

1. What is your definition of social media addiction?
2. How would you feel if you found out a friend was addicted to social media?
3. Do you like the idea of suing companies for making addictive products?
4. Do you think it's fair to call tech companies "big, bad monsters"? Why or why not?
5. Have you or someone you know ever felt pressured by images on social media? Can you share the experience?
6. What do you think about the argument that social media platforms are designed to be harmful?
7. How would you feel if you saw harmful content on social media without any warning?
8. Do you believe that social media companies care about the safety of their users? Why or why not?
9. What is your opinion on the effectiveness of parental controls on social media platforms?
10. Do you think that social media companies should be responsible for checking the age of their users? Why?
11. Have you ever felt "attacked" by content on social media? How did you handle it?
12. What do you think about the statement that Snapchat is made to take away the pressure to be perfect?
13. Do you think that winning a lawsuit can make social media better? Why or why not?
14. In your opinion, what changes should social media companies make to protect young users?
15. Do you believe that making money is more important to tech companies than user safety? Can you explain your answer?

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