Social Media Verdicts
The verdicts are in.
A jury in New Mexico ordered Meta (the parent company of Facebook and Instagram) to pay $375 million in damages after it found the social media giant knowingly harmed children as a result of its platform designs. The verdict also found Meta intentionally withheld knowledge of sexual exploitation, leaving millions of children vulnerable and Meta in violation of the state’s Unfair Practices Act.
Meanwhile, a California jury awarded $6 million in damages to a plaintiff who accused Meta and YouTube of designing their platforms in a way that addicts children and endangers their mental health.
There are thousands of related cases pending in federal and state courts, and an ongoing national debate about the harm children face online.
Analysis and eternal perspective: It is one of the great challenges of our day. Never before has the competition for our attention been so strong, so alluring, and so convenient. Everything the world has to offer is curated nicely on a supercomputer that fits in your pocket and is offered in application packages designed to maximize your time using them. Why? Because your time is the commodity being sold, and the longer you spend on the platform, the higher the price you command.
As Jesus followers, our first and primary concern with this story should be the parameters of our own lives. Who (or what) is getting the first fruits of your attention? Who or what do you turn to when your mind finally has a chance to rest (translation: restore)? Are you rooted in all that is true and beautiful (Philip. 4:8) or does the scroll capture your every in-between moment? It is a hard thing to consider, but one each of us must seriously contemplate it.
For my part, the answer has all too often been an obsession with being plugged in and informed on an up-to-the-minute basis. It has negatively impacted the way I am hardwired and the peace of my spirit, and I have recently made changes to begin a restorative process. It won’t be quick or easy, but it is necessary.
The Equipped is also a part of that process for me. God’s Word is clear we should endeavor to understand the times in which we live (Matt. 16:2-3, Eph. 5:15-16). But that has all too often been an excuse for me to be guided by the happenings of my time. The Equipped is a way for me to intentionally choose to be guided by God’s Word through the temporary happenings of my current earthly home.
How about you? There is a second-order question here, given the emerging data on the psychological impact of social media use, about how you will use the technology in your life. It is an important consideration. But first and foremost, consider this week Who or what is getting the first fruits of your attention. If a course correction is needed, rejoice that you have been made aware of the need for it, and choose a path that restores your joy!
“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me” (Ps. 51:10-12).