AG SUNDAY ON TIKTOK LAWSUIT

The state of Pennsylvania is taking on social media giant TikTok in a lawsuit that's got everyone talking. PA Attorney General Dave Sunday is alleging that TikTok is not only providing inaccurate information to parents, but also purposefully addicting children to its platform to boost profits.

This episode delves into the details of the lawsuit, which claims that TikTok's "13 plus" rating is misleading and deceptive to parents. The Attorney General explains that the company is not doing enough to protect children from accessing mature content, including explicit material and substance use. With over 40% of children aged 13 and up using TikTok daily, the stakes are high.

The Attorney General is seeking a change in behavior from TikTok, rather than just a monetary payout. They want the company to provide truthful information to parents and put protections in place to keep kids safe. But what does this mean for parents, and how can they ensure their kids are protected? Tune in to hear the Attorney General Sunday's thoughts on the matter.

Join us as we explore the complexities of social media and its impact on our children. Listen to this episode to learn more about the lawsuit and what it means for parents and kids alike.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Thank for having me. It's great to have you back.

(00:02):
And the reason we asked you to come on is
you announced that you are filing in a lawsuit against TikTok,
the social media giant, to better protect our kids. Tell
us a little bit about what this is about.

Speaker 2 (00:22):
Sure, obviously one of our it's not our most important
job and government is protecting children, protecting seniors, protecting vulnerable people.
And very simply, we have a company here that we
are alleging is doing two things. Number one, it is
not providing the accurate information. So whenever anyone wants to

(00:44):
get TikTok, they have to download it on what's called
an app store. And parents who we want empowered to
make sure that our kids are utilizing things that we
think are safe, aren't getting the right information to make
that decisi And so what's happening is we're alleging to
TikTok that they're not providing accurate information to these apps stores.

(01:07):
And so because of that, there is a rating of
thirteen plus thirteen years of age and order, which is
deceptive to parents, and that is a huge deal. The
second part of this lawsuit, which is in my opinion,
just as it's not more important is that we're alleging
that TikTok is purposely addicting children and using methods of

(01:32):
that are creating just very serious addictions for young kids.
And this is all being done solely to increase their profit.

Speaker 1 (01:41):
Right, So I want to go back to steps. When
TikTok says that they are a thirteen plus platform, does
that mean they try to determine and ascertain whether someone
is thirteen? At this point are they even doing that?

Speaker 2 (02:00):
Know? What's happening is I mean, so as you know,
I mean, in the world we live in, and you've
covered this, You've talked about this, just how difficult it
is for parents, right, all of our children and I'm
a dad, all of our children are being pushed in
every aspect of their life into social media. And as

(02:20):
a result of that, you know, how do parents know
what their should and shouldn't be on. They rely on
ratings just like you would at a movie theater. Right,
And so we are alleging that that thirteen plus rating
is blowning and essentially that TikTok is providing fictitious and

(02:41):
not accurate information to create that lower threshold, which is
deceptive to parents who are consumers in Pennsylvania.

Speaker 1 (02:51):
So you really allege that as a result, material like
sexual content new to the to be drug use and
more are readily available to kids.

Speaker 2 (03:06):
That's absolutely correct, absolutely correct. You know that's that's what's
happening here. You know, we have TikTok is one of
the most downloaded apps in the in the world. I
think that, and I don't have the number right in
front of me, but I can tell you I think
it's close to forty percent of all children ages thirteen

(03:30):
and up are using TikTok every single day, if not
some of them say they use it constantly throughout the day.
And so as a result of our alleged well we're
alleging to be purposeful misinformation provided parents aren't given the
tools they need to make sure their kids aren't on this.

Speaker 1 (03:49):
So what are you at, pardon me, as attorney general,
looking for from TikTok. What is it you want them
to do?

Speaker 2 (04:01):
So the Attorney General is the chief law officer in
particular with regard to consumer protection laws in Pennsylvania, and
so what we are seeking here is essentially behavioral change
on the part of TikTok. We just want TikTok to
make their products safer for Pennsylvanians and in particular for children.

(04:23):
And so, I mean, obviously you see ags all around
the country that are seeking, like Giant, you know, monetary lawsuits.
You know, what we're seeking our civil penalties. But more importantly,
what we're seeking is a change of behavior. We want
to make I mean, these companies are jay I mean
they these are herculeian sized companies, right with trillions of

(04:47):
dollars available to them, some of the companies. And so
with that being said, you know, sometimes a monetary payout
to them doesn't even really change their day. We want
to see is a change of behavior to make these
platforms safer for children?

Speaker 1 (05:06):
Makes sense now, But when you say civil penalties, does
that mean that as a parent, if my kid was
harmed and I can prove that, I can sue them.
Is that where civil comes in? Or am I misguided? There?

Speaker 2 (05:22):
So what that means very simply is it's up to
the court to make that determination. So the court can say, well,
the court can say, well, you know, TikTok, you have
to change the following behaviors. You have to stop lying
to the app stores, you have to provide truthful information
you have to, you know, put protections in place because

(05:44):
our Jay, the reality is there are versions of TikTok
in other countries that are safer than the one that
our kids use here in America. Wow, And so they
have the capability to do that, and so the court
can say you have to do that. And in addition
to that, because you've misbehaved, essentially, we're gonna find you
whatever you know, million dollars. And so that's again that

(06:08):
will be up to the court, and that'll happen in
due course as we progress through this lawsuit.

Speaker 1 (06:13):
Okay, And what kind of timeline are we on with this?

Speaker 2 (06:18):
So it could be there's no These things don't happen overnight.
The investigation for this case took a long time. The
litigation could take a long time, and so I really
hesitate to give you a timeframe at this point. But
you know, I promise you they will definitely discuss it
as it continues, and we'll make sure that you're a

(06:39):
praise of the situation as litigation goes on.

Speaker 1 (06:42):
Well, thank you for bringing us up to date and
staying ahead of this, because I agree now it stupidity
is protected, though, right, I mean, here's what I mean
by that that you know that TikTok is known for
all the goofy stunts that kids do. Some of them
are harmless, but some of them are not so harmless.
So there's nothing you can really do about that, can you. No.

Speaker 2 (07:05):
And that's not even what we're looking at here, right,
We're not, you know, policing content. What we are doing
is we're just very simply saying that be truthful about
your content so that parents have the facts in front
of them to make the right decision for their children,

(07:25):
you know, especially when you look at the just how
busy parents' lives are, how fast technology moves. You know,
we want to empower parents again to be able to
make that right decision, and if they're being fed misinformation,
then they can't make.

Speaker 1 (07:43):
The right decision, gotcha, Attorney General Dave Sunday. As always,
we appreciate the fact that you'll come on the year
and explain all this. Thanks for doing what you do.

Speaker 2 (07:53):
Thank you, r J.

Speaker 1 (07:54):
Have a wonderful day you too. Take care. Attorney General
Dave Sunday. It is now eight forty four one