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Kentucky AG promises 'damning assertions' in case against Meta

FILE - Attendees visit the Meta booth at the Game Developers Conference 2023 in San Francisco on March 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)
Jeff Chiu/AP
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AP
FILE - Attendees visit the Meta booth at the Game Developers Conference 2023 in San Francisco on March 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)

Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman is calling the multi-state lawsuit against social media giant Meta the "opioid fight of our time."

Kentucky is part of a 29-state coalition suing the parent company of Facebook and Instagram over claims that it knowingly crafted its platforms to be addictive to young people, leading Coleman to draw the comparison to opioids in an interview with WBUR's Here and Now.

"It all comes down to money at the end of the day. The longer our kids stay on, the longer their eyeballs are viewing this technology, the more they're harmed," the top law enforcement official said.

Meta has said it "strongly disagrees" with the allegations, and evidence will show its "longstanding commitment to supporting young people."

Coleman, however, says the evidence gathered by the states will prove otherwise.

"You're going to see some damning assertions from behind the veil inside Meta itself," he said.

Meta is currently facing thousands of lawsuits and has already lost two such cases, costing the company nearly $1 billion in damages. The multi-state coalition is seeking $200 billion, alongside injunctions that could alter how the apps operate.