On Wednesday afternoon, 16-year-old Billy Stern learned that Meta had reached a multibillion dollar settlement over claims its platforms harmed young users. The company agreed to pay up to $17.1 billion to states and to step up protections for teenagers on Facebook and Instagram. Stern said he agreed with the lawsuits' premise that the apps were designed for compulsive use.

News of the settlement made waves among young people, who often voice conflicted views about the platforms where they spend vast amounts of their time. Just over half of teenagers reported spending at least four hours a day on social media apps in a Gallup poll conducted in 2023. In interviews, young people said that they saw the apps as valuable spaces to gather, as well as a waste of time.

Many said they liked Instagram or found it hard to pull themselves away. Rex Wolpoff, a 15-year-old in Weston, Conn., said, "You can easily accumulate an hour of just scrolling Instagram almost mindlessly." In the landmark settlement, the company agreed to limit teenagers to two hours a day on Instagram and Facebook and automatically block the app between midnight and 6 a.m. Meta also said it would disable "like" counts and give teenagers the ability to opt out of an algorithmically personalized feed. Sophia, a 17-year-old in Arlington, Va., said of the new restrictions, "My initial reaction was, that's kind of 'Big Brother.'" She also cautioned adults against assuming all teenagers had negative experiences on social media.

Wolpoff said he thought it made sense for Meta to remove metrics such as likes, which can result in teenagers comparing themselves to others.