Meta Discussed Campaign to Turn Academics Against Teen Mental Health Critic Jonathan Haidt
October 2026 court filings show Meta employees discussed a March 2023 “Whisper strategy” to turn academics against Jonathan Haidt, whose research linked social media to teen depression and anxiety. The notes don’t show whether the plan was executed.
Court documents filed in October 2026 reveal that Meta considered a covert campaign in March 2023 to discredit social psychologist Jonathan Haidt, a prominent critic who linked social media use to rising adolescent depression and anxiety.
The documents, filed in federal litigation over Meta’s product safety claims for teens, include notes from internal meetings labeled “Well-being Meeting Sound-check Notes.” Under a March 7, 2023 entry, employees discussed a “Whisper strategy” to “turn other academics against Haidt,” citing “strong methodologists” who could challenge his work more forcefully. A March 8 entry attributed to then-VP of research Curtiss Cobb states the team’s goal as: “how do we get the academic community to disavow Haidt.” The notes also reference a “Below-the-line campaign” and the idea of getting someone to write a “take-down piece” against him.
The documents are riddled with typos and shorthand, suggesting they may reflect early brainstorming rather than finalized plans. It remains unclear whether Meta acted on any of the ideas. The company did not provide a comment to The Verge on the filing.
At the time, Haidt had testified before Congress in 2022 and launched a Substack newsletter in February 2023 expanding on his theories. His book, The Anxious Generation , had not yet been published. Meta employees noted in the documents that his arguments were expected to feature prominently in upcoming multi-district litigation over the next two years.
In a statement, Haidt said he was “not surprised,” adding: “When companies can’t dispute the evidence, they go after the messenger.” He described the more significant revelations as documents showing Meta’s legal team delayed or blocked internal well-being research.
The disclosures come amid ongoing legal and public scrutiny of Meta’s impact on teen mental health. While many academics have disputed Haidt’s conclusions — and several large studies have found little direct effect of social media on teen mental health at the population level — his theories have gained wide traction among parents, educators, and policymakers.