A Statement on the Landmark Meta Settlement from Elizabeth Gaines

Founder & CEO of The Children's Funding Project urges state leaders to move the conversation from accountability to investment in young people

WASHINGTON, Aug. 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Can we do a lot of good with some portion of $17 billion going to young people and the things they are calling for? Absolutely. Is it an adequate amount to repair the harms and offer a real counterbalance to the damage done? Absolutely not.

The landmark Meta settlement is an important acknowledgment of something young people, families and communities have been telling us for years: the harms associated with social media are real, and the companies that profited from creating and amplifying those risks have a responsibility to help repair them. But, the settlement amount should never be mistaken for the value of the harm done. 

The protections required of Meta matter. As does the requirement that settlement dollars address harms to young people. But, this settlement cannot be the end of the conversation about accountability, it must be the beginning of a much more important conversation about repair.

No dollar amount can fully capture the impact that years of addictive platform design and excessive screen time have had on a generation of young people. The size of this settlement should not become the measure of the size of the problem.

Meta invested in and profited from platforms that harmed young people, the investment in programs and policies to undo those harms should be equal in scale.

Now states have an extraordinary opportunity, and a responsibility, to decide what comes next. Dollars intended to remediate harm to young people should reach young people. That means investing not only in responding to crises, but in rebuilding the real-life experiences that help prevent them: afterschool programs, sports, arts, mentoring, outdoor activities, community organizations, mental health supports and safe places where young people can build relationships and belonging.

We spent years asking how we protect children from what happens online. We now need to invest just as seriously in what happens when they put their phones down.

Every dollar intended to repair the harms experienced by young people should be tracked, protected and invested with young people at the center. Fund IRL and our partners intend to work with attorneys general, governors, state leaders, youth organizations and young people themselves to help make sure that happens.

This settlement is not the finish line. It is an opportunity to build something better for young people, and we intend to make sure that opportunity is not lost.

About Fund IRL:  Fund IRL is a coalition working to ensure any payouts from current social media lawsuits help fund programs and services that promote youth well-being and healthy development. "In real life" (IRL) opportunities—ones where young people build skills, make friends, and grow—are a powerful antidote to the harms of social media.

About Children's Funding Project: Children's Funding Project is a nonprofit that helps states and localities identify, track, and secure dedicated public funding for children's programs. Since its founding in 2018, the organization has helped train more than 1,000 budget advocates and win 25 ballot campaigns, generating more than $2 billion annually for children.

CONTACT: Andrea Fitzpatrick - [email protected]

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SOURCE Children's Funding Project