(Left) Joann Bogard holds a photo of her son, Mason, in Washington on Jan. 31, 2024. (Middle) Judy Rogg holds a photo of her son, Erik, in Los Angeles on April 15, 2026. (Right) Annie McGrath holds a photo of her son, Griffin, in Los Angeles on Feb. 18, 2026. Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Accountable Tech, John Fredricks/The Epoch Times, Frederic J. Brown / AFP via Getty Images
LOS ANGELES—Judy Rogg had waited years for this moment. In late February, a YouTube executive took the stand in a landmark social media addiction trial in Los Angeles—the first to test whether tech companies could be held liable for the design and operation of their platforms and resulting psychological harm to children.
For parents who have lost children to accidental deaths or suicides they say were caused or facilitated by social media, it was a watershed moment, and an emotional one. How would leaders of the world’s most powerful social media companies answer claims that they knew the risks, but targeted young people anyway?
