COURTS
Judge admits new surgeon general 'Harms of Screen Use' advisory into New Mexico v. Meta trial
Chief deputy attorney general: 'Seeing the report yesterday was a surprise to me, as anybody else'
Editor鈥檚 note: A prior version of this story misidentified the state prosecutor who questioned Laurence Steinberg.
SANTA FE 鈥� A U.S. Surgeon General鈥檚 Office that has remained leaderless since President Donald Trump took office last year issued a 鈥淲arning on the Harms of Screen Use鈥� Wednesday, presenting potential new evidence in a host of pending lawsuits against social media titan Meta.
The 43-page report, which ties excessive screen time to poor health outcomes among youth, served as a kind of evidentiary curveball as testimony in the second phase of New Mexico鈥檚 landmark $3.7 billion lawsuit against Facebook鈥檚 parent company winds to a close.
Both the court and attorneys on either side of the case said the release came as a surprise amid the state鈥檚 ongoing legal battle with the Silicon Valley giant over its social media platforms鈥� alleged harms to young New Mexicans.
The document鈥檚 relevance to the case was the focus of debate Thursday morning as Meta鈥檚 attorneys called their final witnesses in the bench trial, which began early this month following the state鈥檚 $375 million victory over the company in March.
Before admitting the report into evidence, 1st Judicial District Court Judge Bryan Biedscheid discussed the wide-ranging report鈥檚 relevance to the harms of social media use among kids and adolescents that are germane to the case. He also entertained a wild swing by the defense to suggest the state might have had a hand in the document鈥檚 release.
鈥淪eeing the report yesterday was a surprise to me, as anybody else,鈥� said James Grayson, New Mexico鈥檚 chief deputy attorney general. 鈥淗ad not heard about it, didn鈥檛 know anything about it until it was issued and it was presented to me, so I can say that we had nothing to do with it.鈥�
In lieu of a Senate-confirmed surgeon general nominee, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. unveiled the report at an event in Iowa on Wednesday.
鈥淲hile screen use can have some benefits, the evidence of a range of risks to children鈥檚 overall mental and physical health is mounting,鈥� the health secretary states in the report.
A follow-up to a 2023 report on the dangers of screen use published under former President Joe Biden鈥檚 administration, the document calls for researchers to 鈥減rioritize research about long-term impacts from screens.鈥�
The new release mentions social media a total of 36 times, though it notes that 鈥渟ocial media is only one aspect of this ongoing screen time problem,鈥� also stating that 鈥済aming, online gambling, and other forms of virtual interaction are emerging.鈥�
Linking harms from Meta鈥檚 platforms like Facebook and Instagram, specifically, to social media users under the age of 18 in New Mexico has formed the basis of argument in the first-of-its-kind lawsuit.
Attorneys from the Washington, D.C., law firm Kellogg, Hansen, Todd, Figel & Frederick are representing Meta in the case. Since the state rested May 13, Meta鈥檚 attorneys have chipped away at the attorney general's argument that the company鈥檚 platforms can be clearly tied to poor mental health outcomes among New Mexico youth.
鈥淭hese are correlational studies, from which causal inferences cannot be derived,鈥� said Laurence Steinberg, a Temple University professor and a consultant for Meta since 2022, who testified this week.
Of a list of 13 contributors to teen mental health, one study Steinberg referenced ranked the 鈥渆ffect size鈥� of 鈥渟ocial media鈥� to be the lowest, with 鈥減eer rejection鈥� at the top.
Steinberg served as one of several witnesses Meta has offered experts during trial.
He echoed Columbia University psychiatry professor Randy Auerbach, who in testimony on Wednesday called findings in studies upon which the state鈥檚 case is partly predicated 鈥渨eak and inconsistent.鈥�
Auerbach pointed to a 2022 study, which found time spent on social media to be 鈥渁mong the least influential factors in adolescent mental health.鈥�
During cross-examinations, state prosecutors noted that Meta鈥檚 witnesses lacked the expertise on teen mental health in New Mexico, specifically, held by experts called by the state.
State prosecutor Don Migliori made comparisons to University of New Mexico professor Kimothi Cain, a board-certified adolescent psychiatrist specializing in treating teens, for example, while questioning Steinberg on Thursday.
鈥淚n fact, she has a focus on teen suicide. You don't have that kind of focus, do you?鈥� Migliori posed.
鈥淣o,鈥� Steinberg replied.
鈥淎ll right. And she has a master's in public health. She's triple board certified,鈥� Migliori added. 鈥淵ou don't have any board certifications, correct?鈥�
Though he is widely credited in hundreds of articles and essays on adolescent mental health, Steinberg, again, replied in the negative.
The state is asking the judge to compel Meta to pay for a sweeping abatement plan to mitigate the tech giant鈥檚 alleged harms to young users across the state. It would fund law enforcement, mental health and education programs.
Meta鈥檚 attorneys also took aim at that proposed relief plan on Thursday, arguing that the state was attempting to tie too large a proportion of negative outcomes among its youth to Meta鈥檚 platforms.
All told, the company鈥檚 attorneys proposed slashing any proposed fees to $1.846 billion if the judge rules in favor of the state.
Since the case was filed in December 2023, similar litigation has been filed in or joined by attorneys generals in more than 40 other states, which also argue that their youth have been targeted by Meta platforms designed to be addictive and lacking sufficient safeguards.
In recent years, Meta has rolled out a suite of teen safety tools across its platforms, recruiting hundreds of influencers to promote the new features.
鈥淭he New Mexico Attorney General鈥檚 focus on a single platform is a misguided strategy that ignores the hundreds of other apps teens use daily,鈥� a Meta spokesperson said in a statement.
Rather than providing comprehensive protections,鈥� the statement continued, 鈥渢he state's proposed mandates infringe on parental rights and stifle free expression for all New Mexicans. Regardless, we remain committed to providing safe, age-appropriate experiences and have already launched many of the protections the state seeks, including 13 safety measures this past year.鈥�
The defense continued to call witnesses into Thursday evening, with testimony tentatively expected to conclude on Friday.
John Miller is the sa国际传媒官网网页入口鈥檚 northern New Mexico correspondent. He can be reached at jmiller@abqjournal.com.
