May 1, 2026
Social media’s smoking gun?
Meta's Big Tobacco PR Tactics
Readers drag Meta as all smoke, no safety, and say the comparison feels way too real
TLDR: Meta is facing fresh heat over claims its youth “safety” messaging works like old cigarette marketing: a shiny distraction from harm concerns, as lawsuits and teen-protection laws grow. Commenters were savage, calling Facebook useless, unmoderated, and more focused on appearances than actually protecting people.
Meta is being compared to Big Tobacco, and the comment section basically said: yeah, that tracks. The article argues that just like cigarette companies once dressed up ordinary manufacturing tricks as reassurance, Meta now leans hard on talk about “safety features” while facing claims that its apps may fuel compulsive use, anxiety, and depression — especially for teens. With lawsuits piling up, warning labels being pushed, and even countries like Australia moving to ban social media for under-16s, readers weren’t exactly in a forgiving mood.
The strongest reaction? Flat-out contempt. One commenter declared Facebook has brought “no meaningful value” in the last decade and begged everyone to simply stop caring. Another accused Meta of spending “big fat 0” on real safety, saying scam bots get reported over and over and somehow survive the purge. That complaint got backup from the brutally short mic-drop: “They’re not even moderating anymore.” Ouch.
There was also some full-on breakup energy. One reader said if it were up to them, Meta would be “disbanded and chopped up at once,” though they also admitted the addiction comparison isn’t exactly shocking in a world built on endless scrolling. And because the internet can never resist a dark joke, someone zoomed out to note that Lucky Strikes went from 10 cents in 1917 to about $10 now, tossing in a wtfhappenedin1971.com link like a conspiracy cherry on top. In other words: the article brought the history lesson, but the comments brought the flames.
Key Points
- •The article compares Meta’s public-relations strategy to American Tobacco’s 1917 Lucky Strike “It’s Toasted” campaign, which highlighted a standard manufacturing practice as a perceived safety benefit.
- •It says recent research links social media design features such as infinite scroll and algorithmic feeds to compulsive use, anxiety, depression, and social comparison.
- •The article states that claims about undisclosed or unacted-on internal Meta research have increased skepticism about the company’s accountability regarding user mental health.
- •It reports that Australia banned social media for children under 16 in December 2025, while other countries and some US states are pursuing restrictions or warning-label requirements.
- •The article says Meta and YouTube were found negligent in a case brought by a young woman identified as Kaley, and notes that thousands of similar lawsuits are pending in US courts.