Meta CEO defends app's age policies

Zuckerberg testifies in social media addiction lawsuit. His likability may become a factor.

- SONJA SHARP

MARK ZUCKERBERG, shown arriving at court in L.A., testified kids under 13 aren't allowed on Instagram.

Meta Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg made an extended, pugnacious appearance in Los Angeles County Superior Court on Wednesday, defending his company from the witness stand against a lawsuit that alleges social media harm children.

The Meta boss appeared in a dark suit and gray tie, his signature chestnut curls slightly mussed, darting occasional nervous looks at the jury and the 20-year-old plaintiff, who sat in the courtroom gallery.

"I'm not — I think I'm actually sort of well-known to be very bad at this," Zuckerberg told the young woman’s attorney, Mark Lanier, when pressed about the professional polish of his testimony.

In a dramatic moment late in the morning, Judge Carolyn B. Kuhl sharply warned anyone in the courtroom against wearing Meta’s artificial intelligence glasses.

“If your glasses are recording, you must take them off,” the judge said. “It is the order of this court that there must be no facial recognition of the jury. If you have done that, you must delete it. This is very serious.”

The admonition was met with silence in the courtroom.

Simply getting Zuckerberg on the stand Wednesday was a coup for the plaintiffs and a potential liability for his company’s platforms, which must now contend with profound public distaste for the Meta figurehead.

According to a study last year by the nonpartisan Pew Research Center, the overwhelming majority of American adults have an unfavorable view of Zuckerberg.

The percentage of adults who view him very favorably is on par with the share who believe the Earth is flat or that aliens live among us.

“It’s a very big deal,” said Jenny Kim, an attorney in a related lawsuit. “The whole world is coming to watch him.”