Irish Times Opinion Editor Jennifer O'Connell looks at a recent US court case and how it could upend social media's hold on us. Twenty year old Kaley – referred to in court by her initials, KGM – won her case after a jury agreed Instagram and YouTube were designed to be addictive. It awarded her damages of $6 million, with Meta to pay 70 per cent and YouTube the rest. [ Meta and Google case: Is this social media’s ‘big tobacco’ moment?Opens in new window ]Some of these are helpful hacks. [ Irish law ‘blocking’ actions on behalf of children over ‘addictive’ social media appsOpens in new window ]The case achieved something significant: it exposed the lie that personal responsibility or better parenting is enough to regulate big tech.

Source: The Irish Times March 29, 2026 09:31 UTC