By KAITLYN HUAMANI and BARBARA ORTUTAY, Associated Press Technology Writers

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The world’s biggest social media companies face several landmark trials this year that seek to hold them responsible for harms to children who use their platforms. Opening arguments for the first, in Los Angeles County Superior Court, begin this week.

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Instagram’s parent company Meta and Google’s YouTube will face claims that their platforms deliberately addict and harm children. TikTok and Snap, which were originally named in the lawsuit, settled for undisclosed sums.

“This was only the first case — there are hundreds of parents and school districts in the social media addiction trials that start today, and sadly, new families every day who are speaking out and bringing Big Tech to court for its deliberately harmful products,” said Sacha Haworth, executive director of the nonprofit Tech Oversight Project.

At the core of the case is a 19-year-old identified only by the initials “KGM,” whose case could determine how thousands of other, similar lawsuits against social media companies will play out. She and two other plaintiffs have been selected for bellwether trials — essentially test cases for both sides to see how their arguments play out before a jury and what damages, if any, may be awarded, said Clay Calvert, a nonresident senior fellow of technology policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute.

It’s the first time the companies will argue their case before a jury, and the outcome could have profound effects on their businesses and how they will handle children using their platforms.

KGM claims that her use of social media from an early age addicted her to the technology and exacerbated depression and suicidal thoughts. Importantly, the lawsuit claims that this was done through deliberate design choices made by companies that sought to make their platforms more addictive to children to boost profits. This argument, if successful, could sidestep the companies’ First Amendment shield and Section 230, which protects tech companies from liability for material posted on their platforms.

“Borrowing heavily from the behavioral and neurobiological techniques used by slot machines and exploited by the cigarette industry, Defendants deliberately embedded in their products an array of design features aimed at maximizing youth engagement to drive advertising revenue,” the lawsuit says.

Executives, including Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, are expected to testify at the trial, which will last six to eight weeks. Experts have drawn similarities to the Big Tobacco trials that led to a 1998 settlement requiring cigarette companies to pay billions in health care costs and restrict marketing targeting minors.

FILE – Attendees visit the Meta booth at the Game Developers Conference 2023 in San Francisco on March 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)

“Plaintiffs are not merely the collateral damage of Defendants’ products,” the lawsuit says. “They are the direct victims of the intentional product design choices made by each Defendant. They are the intended targets of the harmful features that pushed them into self-destructive feedback loops.”

The tech companies dispute the claims that their products deliberately harm children, citing a bevy of safeguards they have added over the years and arguing that they are not liable for content posted on their sites by third parties.

“Recently, a number of lawsuits have attempted to place the blame for teen mental health struggles squarely on social media companies,” Meta said in a recent blog post. “But this oversimplifies a serious issue. Clinicians and researchers find that mental health is a deeply complex and multifaceted issue, and trends regarding teens’ well-being aren’t clear-cut or universal. Narrowing the challenges faced by teens to a single factor ignores the scientific research and the many stressors impacting young people today, like academic pressure, school safety, socio-economic challenges and substance abuse.”

A Meta spokesperson said in a recent statement that the company strongly disagrees with the allegations outlined in the lawsuit and that it’s “confident the evidence will show our longstanding commitment to supporting young people.”

José Castañeda, a Google Spokesperson, said that the allegations against YouTube are “simply not true.” In a statement, he said, “Providing young people with a safer, healthier experience has always been core to our work.”

The case will be the first in a slew of cases beginning this year that seek to hold social media companies responsible for harming children’s mental well-being. A federal bellwether trial beginning in June in Oakland, California, will be the first to represent school districts that have sued social media platforms over harms to children.

In addition, more than 40 state attorneys general have filed lawsuits against Meta, claiming it is harming young people and contributing to the youth mental health crisis by deliberately designing features on Instagram and Facebook that addict children to its platforms. The majority of cases filed their lawsuits in federal court, but some sued in their respective states.

TikTok also faces similar lawsuits in more than a dozen states.

In New Mexico, meanwhile, opening arguments begin Monday for trial on allegations that Meta and its social media platforms have failed to protect young users from sexual exploitation, following an undercover online investigation. Attorney General Raúl Torrez in late 2023 sued Meta and Zuckerberg, who was later dropped from the suit.

Prosecutors have said that New Mexico is not seeking to hold Meta accountable for its content but rather its role in pushing out that content through complex algorithms that proliferate material that can be harmful, saying they uncovered internal documents in which Meta employees estimate that about 100,000 children every day are subjected to sexual harassment on the company’s platforms.

Meta denies the civil charges while accusing Torrez of cherry-picking select documents and making “sensationalist” arguments. The company says it has consulted with parents and law enforcement to introduce built-in protections to social media accounts, along with settings and tools for parents.

Ortutay reported from Oakland, California. Associated Press Writer Morgan Lee in Santa Fe, New Mexico, contributed to this story.

By JENNIFER McDERMOTT, Associated Press

CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy (AP) — Olympic fans came to Cortina with heavy winter coats and gloves. Those coats were unzipped Sunday and gloves pocketed as snow melted from rooftops — signs of a warming world.

“I definitely thought we’d be wearing all the layers,” said Jay Tucker, who came from Virginia to cheer on Team USA and bought hand warmers and heated socks in preparation. “I don’t even have gloves on.”

Karli Poliziani, center right, poses for a photo with her father, Len, as the temperature rose in the host city, during the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/ Jennifer McDermott)

The timing of winter, the amount of snowfall and temperatures are all less reliable and less predictable because Earth is warming at a record rate, said Shel Winkley, a Climate Central meteorologist. This poses a growing and significant challenge for organizers of winter sports; The International Olympic Committee said last week it could move up the start date for future Winter Games to January from February because of rising temperatures.

While the beginning of the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Cortina truly had a wintry feel, as the town was blanketed in heavy snow. The temperature reached about 40 degrees Fahrenheit (4.5 degrees Celsius) Sunday afternoon. It felt hotter in the sun.

This type of February “warmth” for Cortina is made at least three times more likely due to climate change, Winkley said. In the 70 years since Cortina first held the Winter Games, February temperatures there have climbed 6.4 degrees Fahrenheit (3.6 degrees Celsius), he added.

Coping with varying climates across host cities

For the Milan Cortina Games, there’s an added layer of complexity. It’s the most spread-out Winter Games in history, so Olympic venues are in localities with very different weather conditions. Bormio and Livigno, for example, are less than an hour apart by car, but they are separated by a high mountain pass that can divide the two places climatically.

Dan Wilton, of Vancouver, Canada, left walks with his friends without jackets as temperatures rise in the host city, during the 2026 Winter Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/ Jennifer McDermott)

The organizing committee is working closely with four regional and provincial public weather agencies. It has positioned weather sensors at strategic points for the competitions, including close to the ski jumping ramps, along the Alpine skiing tracks and at the biathlon shooting range.

Where automatic stations cannot collect everything of interest, the committee has observers — “scientists of the snow”— from the agencies ready to collect data, according to Matteo Pasotti, a weather specialist for the organizing committee.

The hope? Clear skies, light winds and low temperatures on race days to ensure good visibility and preserve the snow layer.

The reality: “It’s actually pretty warm out. We expected it to be a lot colder,” said Karli Poliziani, an American who lives in Milan. Poliziani was in Cortina with her father, who considered going out Sunday in just a sweatshirt.

And forecasts indicate that more days with above-average temperatures lie ahead for the Olympic competitions, Pasotti said.

Weather can affect competition

Weather plays a critical role in the smooth running and safety of winter sports competitions, according to Filippo Bazzanella, head of sport services and planning for the organizing committee. High temperatures can impact the snow layer on Alpine skiing courses and visibility is essential. Humidity and high temperatures can affect the quality of the ice at indoor arenas and sliding centers, too.

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Visibility and wind are the two factors most likely to cause changes to the competition schedule, Bazzanella added. Wind can be a safety issue or a fairness one, such as in the biathlon where slight variations can disrupt the athletes’ precise shooting.

American alpine skier Jackie Wiles said many races this year have been challenging because of the weather.

“I feel like we’re pretty good about keeping our heads in the game because a lot of people are going to get taken out by that immediately,” she said at a team press conference last week. “Having that mindset of: it’s going to be what it’s going to be, and we still have to go out there and fight like hell regardless.”

The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

By DAVE SKRETTA, Assocaited Press Sports Writer

MILAN (AP) — On the same day Amber Glenn won Olympic gold as part of the team event, and stepped away from social media due to backlash over her comments on politics and the LGBTQ+ community, the American figure skater ended up with another headache.

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Canadian artist Seb McKinnon, who produces music under the name CLANN, took to social media late Sunday to object to the use of his song “The Return,” which Glenn had used in her free skate — and has been using for the past two years without issue.

“So just found out an Olympic figure skater used one of my songs without permission for their routine. It aired all over the world … what? Is that usual practice for the Olympics?” McKinnon posted to X, shortly after the team competition had ended.

Figure skaters are required to obtain permission for the music they use, but that process is hardly straightforward.

Sometimes the label or record producer owns the copyright, other times the artist themselves, and often there are multiple parties involved. Skaters sometimes will piece together different cuts of music, too. Throw in third-party companies such as ClicknClear that try to smooth out the permission process, and the entire copyright issue becomes murky and nuanced.

According to McKinnon, “The deal I have with my label is that I alone can give the OK to license my music.”

Glenn was not available for comment on the music issue early Monday. She planned to take the day off from training and then leave Milan to practice elsewhere ahead of the individual women’s event, which begins Feb. 17 with the short program.

Messages left by The Associated Press with U.S. Figure Skating about Glenn’s copyright problem were not immediately returned.

The issue is not the first bit of controversy involving Glenn at the Milan Cortina Games.

Amber Glenn of the United States competes during the figure skating women’s team event at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)

The outspoken LGBTQ+ rights activist said she received threats on social media after saying during a pre-Olympics press conference that the queer community is going through a “hard time” amid the political climate under President Donald Trump.

“I was disappointed because I’ve never had so many people wish me harm before, just for being me and speaking ‍about being decent — human rights and decency,” Glenn said Sunday night, wearing an LGBTQ+ pin on her team jacket during the team medal ceremony.

“So that was really disappointing,” Glenn said, “and I do think it kind of lowered that excitement for this.”

Copyrights never used to be a problem in figure skating because the International Skating Union barred any music involving vocals, and most classical music is considered public domain. But when those rules were relaxed in 2014, and modern music began to be used, artists soon demanded that they receive compensation for their work.

It all came to a head at the 2022 Beijing Olympics, when one of the indie artists who covered “House of the Rising Sun” objected to its use by American pairs skaters Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier. The ensuing lawsuit prompted the ISU to step in and try to develop systems that would help skaters avoid copyright infringement claims.

“It’s never been an issue and then suddenly it is, and I don’t understand why,” Glenn told the AP ahead of the Winter Games. “I understand there was a big upset at the last Olympics because some artist — I’m sorry, they decided to be (jerks). Like, they couldn’t just appreciate this Olympic team competing? It wasn’t even their song to begin with; it was a cover.

“It’s not like we’re a TV show and playing music in the background for an emotional scene. It just feels like a cash grab for different companies, and it’s really upsetting that they can’t just appreciate that their music has inspired something creative.”

Justin Dillon, the director of high performance for U.S. Figure Skating, said the governing body has tried to help its skaters avoid any copyright claims. It is unclear whether the organization played any role in getting Glenn’s music approved.

Numerous fans and even fellow skaters have been quick to rush to the American’s defense.

“I’d be so honored that someone wants to skate to my music and give the music some amazing exposure,” said retired Canadian pairs skater Meagan Duhamel, a two-time Olympian and three-time medalist. “I used a piece of music for the 2018 Olympics and the artist was so excited she flew to the Olympics to listen and watch it live.”

After Nathan Chen won gold at the Beijing Games with a free skate set to “Rocket Man,” Elton John effusively praised the American for his performance. Chen later collaborated with the musical legend for a music video to a version of “Hold Me Closer.”

“We really rely on our music,” said Alysa Liu, part of the gold medal-winning U.S. team. “Without music, we’re not really our sport.”

Lisa Shafer and her twin 10-year-old daughters rang the doorbell of a house in Stillwater on Sunday afternoon with a bouquet of Valentine’s Day flowers in hand.

Answering the door was Rita Youngren, whose husband, Orlan, died in October 2022.

This is the fourth year that Youngren has received a bouquet of Valentine’s Day flowers from Bailey’s Bouquets, a Stillwater-based nonprofit organization devoted to “spreading kindness and love through flowers.”

“Isn’t it amazing? It’s really special,” Youngren said. “I can’t say enough about what it means. The first year was really a nice surprise. (Orlan) always remembered Valentine’s Day.”

Bailey’s Bouquets started with 12 bouquets delivered to 12 widows a few days before Valentine’s Day in February of 2022.

On Sunday, 20 volunteers gathered at St. Mary’s and made and delivered more than 80 bouquets in and around the St. Croix River Valley.

“This isn’t just about flowers,” said Michelle Bailey, 84, of Stillwater, co-founder of the organization. “It’s about reminding someone that they are not alone, that they are loved and not forgotten.”

‘A holiday that can be hard’

Bailey, 84, and her daughters, Danielle Bailey, also of Stillwater, and Patrice Scelzo, of Chicago, started delivering bouquets on Super Bowl Sunday in 2022. Michelle Bailey, a retired social worker, was facilitating a small grief group at the Churches of St. Michael and St. Mary at the time. Her husband, Richard, died of a stroke in 2020 at the age of 78.

“Danielle happened to hear a story about a florist in North Carolina who did this,” Michelle Bailey said. “People could nominate widows, and the florist would deliver bouquets to them for free. She said, ‘Mom, would you like to do that for your group? We could do bouquets for everyone in the group.’”

The Baileys bought flowers and created 12 bouquets in pint fruit jars in Danielle Bailey’s kitchen. They then delivered them to the widows in the group.

The next year, they delivered 24 bouquets. Bailey’s Bouquets has grown exponentially since then.

They chose Super Bowl Sunday as the day to make and deliver their “Widow’s Project” bouquets because it is the Sunday before Valentine’s Day.

“That’s a holiday that can be hard,” Michelle Bailey said.

Once a widow is nominated for a bouquet, they’ll get a bouquet every year thereafter. “Once you’re on the list, you stay on the list,” she said. “If you were on in 2022, you’re still on.”

The bouquets are made and delivered free of charge to widows in the St Croix River Valley.

‘People … want to pass on the kindness’

The mission has been so successful that the Baileys last year decided to form the nonprofit organization and create and send bouquets throughout the year “to help anyone who may be grieving,” Danielle Bailey said.

“Grief affects us all,” Danielle Bailey said. “I miss my dad on my birthday, for example, so giving a bouquet when someone misses a loved one can brighten their day. … It’s not just on Valentine’s Day that you’re dealing with grief, right?”

Bailey’s Bouquets purchases flowers and greens at a discount from Rose Floral in Stillwater, Ladybug and Blooms, a cut flower farm in Lake Elmo and Trader Joe’s in Woodbury, Danielle Bailey said.

“People understand and love what we’re doing and want to pass on the kindness,” she said.

On Saturday, Michelle Bailey bought flowers at Trader Joe’s, and the employee who helped her load them into her car asked what they were for.

“Well, his father died two years ago yesterday, and February is a really tough month for his mom,” she said. “I said, ‘Where does your mom live?’ He said, ‘Woodbury.’ I said, ‘We’ll get her a bouquet.’ So she’s on our list today.”

“Stories like those happen all the time,” Michelle Bailey said. “There are so many providential kinds of things that occur that we just know the hand of the Lord is in it. He keeps hitting us up the side of the head, saying ‘Go here, go there.’”

In October, Bailey’s Bouquets was nominated to receive a grant from the Power of 100 Women Greater Stillwater Chapter, a philanthropic organization that meets twice a year to support a local nonprofit organization. Each woman gives $100.

Top honors — and the $10,000 grant — went to CAST (Citizens Against Sex Trafficking), but so many women attended the event that Bailey’s Bouquets and another organization, Bridge to Books, received $4,000 each, said Taylor Housley Pass, who along with her mother, Sen. Karin Housley, R-Oak Park Heights, co-founded the Stillwater chapter.

Pass, who nominated Bailey’s Bouquets for a grant, said she learned about the organization from Jackie Blair, a neighbor in Oak Park Heights who received a bouquet from Bailey’s Bouquets last year.

“I was dropping a loaf of sourdough bread off for Jackie last year, and she told me that someone dropped flowers off at her door,” Pass said. “She said that I needed to get in contact with (them) because it had made her day. … They do so much for our community.”

Blair, whose husband, Max, died in July 2024 at the age of 49, said she was profoundly moved by the bouquet she received last year.

“When you go through a loss like that, there’s a lot of fear and shock that comes with it, so when you get a surprise of someone doing such a nice gesture, it just means so much more than it would otherwise,” said Blair, the mother of two children. “You just don’t know how special it is. It’s a bouquet of flowers to other people, but to me, it meant so much more.”

“It showed me that even in the hardest moments, there are people who pay attention, who care, and who choose to act — even if they don’t know you personally,” she said.

“Valentine’s Day is a very intimate holiday,” she said. “It’s kind of like your anniversary. It’s only really special to you and your husband, so when you come towards these first holidays, you kind of prepare yourself to be alone. But when someone, because they’re a widow, knows that that particular day or particular season is harder than others, it just means so much because they know. They sweep in in those moments where you have prepared yourself for a really hard time, and they brighten it.”

A day of flower drops

Each widow gets a call from Michelle Bailey the day before the Super Bowl, so they know to expect a “flower drop” on Sunday afternoon.

The group uses special decorations for the bouquets and items such as juice jars and teacups for the vases.

“It’s basically ‘designer’s choice,’” said Danielle Bailey, who works as a corporate event planner for a medical company.

One of the designers volunteering on Sunday afternoon was Heidi Leeson, of Hudson, who received one of the Baileys’ first bouquets in 2022. Clark Leeson, her husband of 44 years, died in 2008.

“You just want to cry when you get it,” she said. “You want to weep because somebody loves you. It’s very sweet, and it’s very simple, and it’s very beautiful. It just reminds you of the fragility and the beauty of life. It’s hard, if you’re not a widow, to understand, but it’s true.”

Roxanne Jenkins, who lives in White Bear Lake, said she began volunteering with the group after she heard about it from her longtime friend Teresa Hoffbeck, of Stillwater.

“I said, ‘I want in. I want to do this, too,’” said Jenkins, as she created a bouquet out of roses, carnations, greens and some berries. “And my mom (Ann Emerson) is a recipient, so we’ll be delivering one to her today. Everyone who gets one is so grateful. It just warms them up during a cold February. They feel loved, and they feel remembered, and it kind of breaks down that isolation a little bit. If we can bring just a little bit of warmth, we’re all in.”

Each bouquet contains a handwritten note. Among the messages delivered on Sunday: “May your memories keep you in comfort during this time.” “You are loved and never alone.” “One second, one minute, one hour at a time.” “We see you and love you.” “May your favorite memories carry you through.”

Blair said that every widow she has told about Bailey’s Bouquets immediately wants to donate to the organization, she said. “There’s something about it that resonates deeply with anyone who has walked this path,” she said.

Learning about the organization “shifted something” in Blair, she said.

“Their mission is rooted in noticing people who are carrying heavy things — and offering a moment of beauty, compassion, and acknowledgment,” she said. “Being a young widow is a world you don’t understand until you’re living it, and once you’re in it, you realize how the older widows and the ones walking the same path take care of each other in ways that are often unspoken. Sometimes there simply are no words for the journey, so we show up through small acts of kindness. This gesture felt like that kind of care — a reminder that even in the most lonely of times, including a day like Valentine’s Day, there is still care and a sign that you are not alone.”

Danielle Bailey gave Blair a hug after delivering her bouquet on Sunday.

“You’re so wonderful,” Blair said. “Thank you. Next year, I’m going to be helping you do this. I just didn’t think I could do it today.”

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