By Ibrahim Aksoy — March 29, 2026
Former U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams warned that social media platforms are engineered to hook adolescents and teenagers, arguing their design and marketing resemble tactics once used by cigarette companies to recruit young users. Adams pointed to Surgeon General Vivek Murthy’s 2023 report, which he said shows growing evidence that early social media use is linked to higher rates of anxiety and depression, disrupted sleep that worsens mental health, and rising obesity.
Murthy has called on tech firms and lawmakers to take immediate steps to shield young people from addictive apps and extreme or inappropriate content on services such as Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat. Adams said the government should be explicit that these platforms can be like addictive substances and noted recent lawsuits claim companies deliberately built features to keep children engaged, mirroring past tobacco-industry strategies.
Those lawsuits have produced notable verdicts. A California jury found Meta and YouTube liable for creating platforms that knowingly caused mental-health harm to a young user, awarding the plaintiff known as Kaley G.M. $3 million in compensatory damages and $3 million in punitive damages. A New Mexico jury concluded Meta violated the state’s consumer protection law in a child exploitation case and imposed a $375 million penalty. Both Meta and YouTube told CBS News they plan to appeal those decisions.
Adams cited Australia’s restriction barring users under 16 from accessing social media as an example of tougher regulation. He said court rulings holding companies accountable could prompt more U.S. states to limit phone and social-media use in classrooms; roughly 25 states are considering or have passed measures aimed at keeping phones and social media out of schools. Adams urged policymakers to confront the harms of unfettered screen time for children and to consider regulatory responses to protect young people’s health.