Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, on Monday, asked a state court to compel TikTok to “preserve” and “produce” vital information to advance the multistate investigation into the China-owned social media company.
AG Moody and 45 attorneys general filed an amicus brief asking a state court to order TikTok to fully comply with an ongoing investigation into whether the company violated consumer protection laws in Florida and other states.
The states are seeking to review internal TikTok communications to determine whether the company engaged in deceptive, unfair, and unconscionable conduct that harmed the mental health of TikTok users, particularly children, and teens.
In the news: Clearwater Dunkin Donuts Employee Charged After Shooting Customer In The Parking Lot
Attorney General Ashley Moody said, “The states, Congress, parents, and even some teens have raised serious questions about how this China-owned company is conducting business in the United States. Unfortunately, TikTok is not being forthcoming with answers, and we are being forced to take this action to further our important multistate investigation.”
Despite the request for these communications falling squarely within the investigative authority of the state attorneys general, today’s amicus brief asserts that TikTok repeatedly and knowingly failed to preserve relevant information or provide internal communications in a useful format.
According to Moody’s office, TikTok employees use an instant-messaging service called Lark as their primary mechanism to communicate internally, but TikTok has flouted its duty to preserve communications and provide them in a useable format.
In the news: Former FBI Agent Says Trump Was ‘Instilling Fear’ With CPAC Speech
TikTok instead continues to allow employees to send auto-deleting messages over the Lark platform—even after the start of the investigation—and provided messages to the states in a difficult format to use and navigate.
“Because use of social media platforms like TikTok play a significant role in the ongoing mental-health crisis among young people, TikTok must produce all relevant internal corporate communications to understand whether the company broke any laws,” said Moody’s office in a release.
A wealth of peer-reviewed research shows that social media platforms, especially image and video-based platforms like TikTok, play a substantial role in harming youth mental health.
For example, in February, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released findings demonstrating a startling increase in challenges to youth mental health, youth experiences of violence, and suicidal thoughts and behaviors among teenagers, especially teenage girls.
In the news: Clearwater Dunkin Donuts Employee Charged After Shooting Customer In The Parking Lot
This includes a finding that nearly one-third of teen girls seriously considered suicide in 2021, a nearly 60% increase from a decade prior. Other peer-reviewed research shows increased teen social media use drives this crisis significantly.
The attorneys general involved in the multistate investigation are tasked with protecting the people of their states from illegal business practices. TikTok’s failure to preserve and share relevant internal communications hampers the investigation.
The filed brief requests that the court “compel” TikTok to provide the information sought.
Android Users, Click Here To Download The Free Press App And Never Miss A Story. Follow Us On Facebook Here Or Twitter Here. Signup for our free newsletter by clicking here.