Kentucky Attorney General Sues TikTok for Addictive Harm to Kentucky Youth

By addicting young people to spend endless hours on the platform

FLORENCE, Ky. (Oct. 9, 2024) – Attorney General Russell Coleman announced today the filing of a lawsuit against TikTok and its affiliated entities for the social media platform’s exploitation of Kentucky’s young people to turn a profit. General Coleman alleges this Chinese social media platform engaged in predatory behavior to suck in minors, leading to depression, anxiety, altered development, lack of sleep and more.

“TikTok was specifically designed to be an addiction machine, targeting children who are still in the process of developing appropriate self-control. It doesn’t take much for our kids to fall headfirst into a digital world of unrealistic beauty standards, bullying and low self-esteem,” said Attorney General Coleman. “If we don’t hold TikTok accountable, our children will suffer the very real consequences. Nothing less than their mental, physical and emotional health are on the line.”

In 2022, TikTok reportedly had nearly 100 million U.S. monthly active users and generated an estimated $9.4 billion in revenue. By addicting young people to spend endless hours on the platform, TikTok can deliver them to advertisers and collect a hefty profit. One TikTok executive made the platform’s intentions very clear, saying, “Teenagers in the U.S. are the golden audience.”

The lawsuit, filed in Scott County, Ky., Circuit Court, alleges that TikTok:

• Created a deliberately addictive content system to maximize the amount of time young users spend on the platform;
• Designed features that exploit children’s psychological vulnerabilities;
• Engaged in a scheme to deceptively market the platform and its features; and
• Refused to address the accessibility and spread of child sexual abuse material on the platform.

General Coleman announced the lawsuit at the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce’s Government Forum Luncheon in Florence. Read his remarks as prepared.

General Coleman joined a bipartisan group of attorneys general in filing separate enforcement actions to hold TikTok accountable for its role in worsening children’s mental health, including from California, New York, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Jersey, Oregon, South Carolina, Vermont, Washington and the District of Columbia.

Read the Kentucky complaint.