What Changes Do You Foresee in the Legal Landscape Regarding Social Media Addiction Lawsuits?

Before starting this work, I didn’t realize that products liability law was shaped by the courts rather than being a law that was passed. It emerged as a response to changes in industry—machine processes, mass marketing, and widespread distribution—that led to consumer harm. Courts in states like New York and California recognized that existing laws weren’t equipped to handle these new realities. The beauty of our legal system is that it adapts, and these courts began considering who should bear the risk. Products liability law was built on the idea that companies controlling the manufacturing and distribution processes are in the best position to bear that risk, rather than leaving consumers unprotected. Similarly, the legal landscape for social media and similar platforms remains uncertain. Ideally, we would recognize these platforms for what they are—not just neutral communication tools but products that actively shape user experiences. They may be a hybrid of a product and a service, but they are deeply involved in how people interact online. These companies know exactly what they are doing, yet they refuse to be transparent, even denying in congressional hearings that they design their platforms to be addictive, despite internal documents proving otherwise. It is fundamentally unjust for consumers to bear all the risks and harms while these companies continue to profit without accountability.