Brittainy Newman/AP
Tuesday’s lawsuits against TikTok allege separately, but in like language, that the app’s calculatedly addicting qualities cause severe mental health and even physical harm to young users.
Around-the-clock notifications disrupt their sleep, the “autoplay” feature provides an endless stream of videos, and “beauty filters” encourage young girls to “fix” their appearances, the James lawsuit alleges.
“Young people have died or gotten injured doing dangerous TikTok challenges and many more are feeling sad, anxious, and depressed because of TikTok’s addictive features,” James wrote in a press release.
An attorney who represents TikTok in multiple adolescent addiction and personal injury lawsuits did not immediately return a request for comment Tuesday afternoon.
The TikTok lawsuit may be another of the kind of yearslong litigation marathons that James’ office hasn’t shied from since she first took office in 2019.
Her investigation into the National Rifle Association and its former executive Wayne LaPierre began six years ago, and resulted in a 2020 lawsuit and $5.4 million Manhattan jury judgment that is still in post-trial litigation.
The Trump fraud investigation began in 2018, and also isn’t over yet. The $454 million judgment is under appeal, with a decision expected any time in the coming weeks.
TikTok’s lawyers may be interested to know that Wallace in particular, does not shy from yearslong litigation. In April, he signed a letter to Trump’s fraud judge warning that James’ office is still investigating if the former president withheld evidence, a matter that, like the appeal, remains pending.
https://www.businessinsider.com/ny-ag-letitia-james-stealth-trump-fraud-tiktok-2024-10