JONATHAN TURLEY: Social media addiction will easily outlast Meta's massive multibillion dollar settlement

It is not every day that a company can settle a case for over $17 billion and celebrate. However, Meta's proposed settlement of claims brought by a coalition originally led by 29 states on Wednesday is a remarkably good deal for a company facing potential penalties that Meta estimated could reach $1.4 trillion and years of litigation. In the end, the company may not even take a loss from the litigation.

The proposed settlement ends the states' federal case (but not the wider wave of litigation), following similar settlements in tobacco, opiates, and other products. It will require Meta to make changes to its platform, though the company has already appeared to be moving to make such changes.