Eric Goldman
Eric Goldman appears in Is social media addictive? And are social media companies liable? as the expert explaining a Los Angeles trial over alleged social-media addiction and youth mental-health harms. His contribution is to shift the frame from general platform criticism to legal proof: plaintiffs have to show Platform Legal Causation, not merely that young people were harmed or that platform design influenced behavior.
Goldman also broadens the stakes beyond the named defendants. He argues that social-media litigation could alter internet users’ experience by changing product design, pricing, platform availability, and communication tools. He expects Section 230 to return on appeal and warns that legal theories developed against social media could become Internet Liability Spillover for video games, generative AI model makers, and other internet services.
Meta and Youtube held liable for their addictive products returns to Goldman after jury verdicts against Meta and YouTube in Los Angeles and against Meta in New Mexico. The source identifies him with Santa Clara University’s High Tech Law Institute and uses his analysis to explain why bellwether platform trials matter, why plaintiffs rely on a Section 230 Design Workaround, and why appeals may also raise First Amendment platform defenses.
Connections
- Marketplace Tech - show context for the interview.
- Santa Clara University and High Tech Law Institute - institutional context added by the April 2026 episode.
- Social Media Product Liability, Social Media Causation Science Wars, and Addictive Interaction Design - legal and design branch he discusses.
- Meta, YouTube, TikTok, and Snapchat - platforms named in the episode’s litigation discussion.
- Platform Legal Causation, Section 230, Section 230 Design Workaround, Platform First Amendment Defense, Bellwether Platform Trials, and Internet Liability Spillover - main concepts tied to his analysis.