Mark Zuckerberg to face alleged social media addict in court

Mark Zuckerberg has been ordered to take the stand in the civil trial accusing YouTube and Instagram of intentionally creating addictive social media platforms.

The California Post has learned the billionaire Meta mogul will come face-to-face with his alleged victims in the California Superior Court of Los Angeles County on Feb. 18.

And it could get ugly when Zuckerberg testifies and is forced to look in the eyes of his accuser, a now 20-year-old woman only identified in court as Kayley or K.G.M, who filed the claim.

She says her social media addiction led to mental health problems including anxiety, depression and body image issues, according to the lawsuit.

“Zuckerberg will likely try to express sympathy, and explain the measures Meta has taken to protect kids, but that tactic could get ugly if the victims start yelling and screaming from the gallery,” attorney Royal Oaks, who’s been attending the trial, told The Post.

Lawyers will “try to get Zuckerberg to blow his top” says Oaks, ”by being aggressive and somewhat insulting.”

”They know a jury could be repulsed by a billionaire’s temper.”

The front of the Downtown courthouse has already become a shrine to the alleged victims of social media since the trial opened on Monday, with their pictures displayed at the entrance.

Parents who claim they lost children to social media-related harms even held a vigil ahead of the trial.

“It will be hard for Zuckerberg to miss them if he goes in the front, they may shelter him through an underground entrance,” Oaks said.

Experts have drawn similarities between the case and the trials against Big Tobacco, which eventually led to a 1998 settlement requiring cigarette companies to pay billions in health care costs and restrict marketing targeting minors.

“Plaintiffs are not merely the collateral damage of Defendants’ products,” the lawsuit says. “They are the direct victims of the intentional product design choices made by each Defendant. They are the intended targets of the harmful features that pushed them into self-destructive feedback loops.”

Meta has denied any wrong doing: “The company strongly disagrees with the allegations outlined in the lawsuit and that it’s confident the evidence will show our longstanding commitment to supporting young people,” a Meta spokesperson said.

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