Social media ‘addicting the brains of children,’ plaintiff’s lawyer argues in landmark trial Parents from the United Kingdom, Mariano Janin and George Nicolaou, hold photos of their children outside the Los Angeles County Superior Court in Los Angeles, on Feb. 9. LOS ANGELES (AP) — Comparing social media platforms to casinos and addictive drugs, lawyer Mark Lanier delivered opening statements Monday in a landmark trial in Los Angeles that seeks to hold Instagram owner Meta and Google’s YouTube responsible for harms to children who use their products.