May 4, 2026
Doomscrolling hits the witness stand
Stop big tech from making users behave in ways they don't want to
Jury says apps were built to keep kids hooked — and commenters are furious, split, and joking through it
TLDR: A jury said Meta and YouTube built products that hook young users, turning a long-simmering fear into a major legal moment. In the comments, people are angry and creeped out, but also arguing over a messy question: where does a helpful feature end and manipulation begin?
The biggest gasp from the crowd? A jury in Los Angeles found Meta and YouTube liable for designing products that were meant to be addictive, after a confidential 2019 slide deck reportedly admitted that teens "can’t switch off from Instagram even if they want to." But in the comments, people weren’t just shocked — they were in full pitchfork-and-popcorn mode. One reader dragged up an old internal note claiming Facebook saw 12-year-olds as especially valuable long-term users and should invest more in getting more “tweens,” which sent the discussion straight into creepy villain memo territory.
Then came the classic internet split. Some commenters said this is obviously about companies nudging people into things they never wanted to do, comparing it to manipulative design tricks. Others pushed back hard: hold on, they said, addiction isn’t exactly the same as being tricked. One person basically argued that if dark patterns make you instantly annoyed, addictive apps are sneakier because people may still want them even while feeling trapped by them. And of course, the thread delivered comedy too: one reader joked they couldn’t even figure out the article because they were blocked by a cookie banner offering only “Manage” and “Accept All” — which is almost too perfect for a story about online manipulation. The overall vibe: everyone agrees the situation is bad, but the comments are battling over how to define it, how to regulate it, and whether lawmakers can stop it without accidentally killing useful features too.
Key Points
- •The article discusses efforts to stop major technology platforms from making users behave in ways they do not want.
- •It cites targeting mechanisms designed to rewire the brain’s reward system as the behavior of concern.
- •A confidential 2019 slide deck on Meta’s servers reportedly concluded that teens could not switch off from Instagram even if they wanted to.
- •On March 25, a Los Angeles jury read the slide deck into the record and found Meta and YouTube liable for designing addictive products.
- •The article describes the verdict as a landmark ruling whose implications are still being assessed.