Sure, Sure: CNN Lets Plaintiff Claim Social Media Lawsuits Are ‘Not About the Money’

On Friday’s CNN This Morning, Audie Cornish introduced a segment on lawsuits against social media companies declaring: “This week, one woman received justice in her fight against Big Tech.”

Not a verdict or a jury award—but “justice,” equating the verdict with justice itself. The anti-corporate tilt is on.

The segment highlighted a recent jury decision holding Meta and YouTube liable in a case involving a young woman’s mental health. It also featured prominent trial lawyer Mark Lanier, who said the verdict sent a message that companies “will be held accountable,” that “so many families” have been harmed—and that more cases are coming.

The program spotlighted a $6 million verdict and aired Lanier’s comments, even as his firm says it has recovered “over $20 billion” for clients and typically charges whopping contingency fees of “between 33 and 40%” of recoveries.

Cornish added that the case could be “just the tip of the iceberg,” noting that thousands of similar lawsuits are pending—suggesting a potentially massive wave of litigation.

She then turned to plaintiff Tammy Rodriguez, whose 11-year-old daughter died by suicide in 2021, and asked about criticism from a Wall Street Journal editorial describing such cases as a “social media shakedown” benefiting trial lawyers more than families.

Rodriguez rejected that characterization, insisting the lawsuits are not financially motivated.

“The attorneys that we have been involved with are not out there for the money,” she said. “It’s not about the money for any of us actually. As hard as it is for people to hear that or they don't want to believe us, this is about accountability.”

Rodriguez acknowledged skepticism about that claim, noting that “people say this is a drop in the bucket,” but argued that financial penalties are necessary because companies “only feel it in their pocket.”

Against that backdrop, the claim that lawyers “are not out there for the money” is difficult to square with a system in which firms tout tens of billions in recoveries while taking substantial contingency fees—and where, as CNN itself noted, thousands of additional cases are still to come.

Cornish closed by asking Rodriguez about her daughter’s “legacy going forward.”

Rodriguez said her mission is now to “educate families,” adding: “If I had known, Selena would still be here.”

Even as Rodriguez acknowledged that many people question the claim that these lawsuits aren’t about money, CNN presented the case as “justice”—without exploring the scale of the litigation or the financial incentives driving it.

Here's the transcript.

CNN This Morning
3/27/26
6:21 am EDT

AUDIE CORNISH: So, this week, one woman received justice in her fight against Big Tech. A jury found Meta and YouTube liable on all counts in a case accusing them of intentionally addicting the now 20-year-old woman and harming her mental health. 

MARK LANIER: This message is one that's important to Kaley and her family. But it's of very great importance to a generation of people who have been affected. There are so many families who've been tragically hurt through the addiction of social media. And we've sent a message with this that you will be held accountable. 

CORNISH: All right, so this case could be just the tip of the iceberg. There are thousands more just like it and more trials expected this year. 

Some of the plaintiffs aren't even alive for their day in court, and that includes the daughter of Tammy Rodriguez. Her 11-year-old daughter, Selena, died by suicide in 2021. And Tammy has a pending lawsuit against several social media companies, accusing them of being responsible for her daughter's death, claiming dangerous features on the apps that drove her to tragedy. 

Her mother, Tammy Rodriguez, is here now. Tammy, welcome back. Thank you so much for being with us. 

TAMMY RODRIGUEZ: Thank you for having me back. 

CORNISH: I had talked to you, I think, one or two years ago when the Supreme Court was doing a ruling along the lines of this case, a little bit different legally. And at that time, you all basically lost. So what was it like to be in this courtroom where a verdict was read in your favor? 

RODRIGUEZ: It was incredible. You know, I was there for the day that Mark Zuckerberg did testify. Unfortunately, that's the only day I was able to be there for. 

But to hear him have to testify facing us this time. Wwhen we were in this you know, in Congress before, he faced away from us. 

This time he had to face us while he testified under oath, and that was huge for us parents. That's a win in itself. 

. . . 

CORNISH: One of the things I noticed, the Wall Street Journal editorial page, their reaction was, the social media shakedown begins." And they treated this ruling as something that they say is a victory for the lawyers who want to sue, not for the kids, not for the families. What's your reaction to that? 

RODRIGUEZ: That's 100% wrong. That, 100%, because I can tell you the attorneys that we have been involved with are not out there for the money. 

They've been able to put us in, in situations where they can enable us to meet, um, whether it be government, whether it be, you know, media or things so that we can educate, we can spread awareness. 

They've helped us to perform this parent network. It's not about the money for any of us actually. As hard as it is for people to hear that or they don't want to believe us, this is about accountability. 

Unfortunately, with Big Tech, they only feel it in their pocket. I understand that most people say this is a drop in the bucket, but this is only one case, and there's so many more to come. 

CORNISH: What does this mean for your case, and are you thinking about what you want for Selena's legacy going forward? 

RODRIGUEZ: Well, our case is in the federal court. We're in the MDL. So we still have a while until we get in there. But I will continue for the rest of my life. That has become my mission is to educate families to these things that I had no idea about. And if I had known, Selena would still be here.