00:00:52.960Two juries delivering two major verdicts, totaling hundreds of millions of dollars, putting social media companies on notice.
00:01:01.940I saw a 15-point plan that was floated in the media.
00:01:05.480I would caution reporters in this room from reporting about speculative points.
00:01:10.380The White House says talks with Iran are ongoing.
00:01:13.360Well, Tehran says it's not going to negotiate.
00:01:16.060And new polling shows Americans are increasingly souring on the war.
00:01:20.280Former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem had a top aide reportedly under investigation over billions in no-bid contracts.
00:01:28.200And Democrats pull off a surprise double win in deep red Florida state legislature elections, including a flip on President Trump's home turf.
00:01:37.540All that and more coming up in just a moment on your AM Update.
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00:02:39.820A pair of verdicts this week delivering a clear message to big tech.
00:02:44.560Social media companies can be held liable for harm caused by their products.
00:02:49.060In Los Angeles, Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram and YouTube, found
00:02:54.820liable for harming the plaintiff, a now 20-year-old woman identified as KGM.
00:03:00.880KGM's legal team arguing features like infinite scrolling, constant notifications, and autoplaying
00:03:07.300videos are engineered to keep kids on social media, driving compulsive use linked to depression,
00:03:13.980anxiety, eating disorders, self-harm, and suicide. Yesterday, Meta and YouTube ordered to pay KGM
00:03:21.000$3 million in compensatory damages. Meta on the hook for 70% of the damages and YouTube covering
00:03:28.100the rest. This case, the first in a series of bellwether trials in California. Bellwether
00:03:34.060trials are seen as representative of the totality of cases and can act as a test to gauge how juries
00:03:40.440may respond to similar suits. The jury continuing deliberations to determine punitive damages the
00:03:46.440companies owe for malice or fraud, according to the New York Times. Legal analysts drawing
00:03:51.580comparisons to the big tobacco cases of the 1990s, which led to massive payouts and forced
00:03:57.500sweeping changes to how cigarettes were marketed, especially to minors. Throughout the trial,
00:04:03.020Meta's legal team arguing KGM's mental health issues stemmed from her troubled home life.
00:04:09.580YouTube maintaining it is a streaming platform, not a social media company. The trial running
00:04:14.780five weeks, featuring testimony from top executives, including Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
00:04:20.700Yesterday's verdict potentially paving the way for more trials and settlements down the line,
00:04:25.540with thousands of other suits already filed. A spokeswoman for Meta issuing a statement,
00:04:30.680quote, we respectfully disagree with the verdict and are evaluating our legal options.
00:04:36.480Google, which owns YouTube, planning to appeal. Eight more cases in this series are still set to
00:04:43.120go to trial. In New Mexico, a separate jury also handing down a major verdict against Meta on
00:04:49.940Tuesday, ordering the company to pay $375 million after finding it failed to adequately protect
00:04:56.700children from predators on its platforms. The civil suit brought by New Mexico's Attorney General
00:05:02.340Raul Torres. Throughout the six-week trial, the state arguing meta-publicly portrayed Instagram,
00:05:08.380Facebook, and WhatsApp as safe for children, while downplaying the scale of harmful and
00:05:13.840exploitative content on its platforms. NBC News legal analyst Misty Maris breaking down the case
00:05:20.360and the verdict. This was actually brought by the state of New Mexico through the Attorney General,
00:05:25.420And it's brought under a consumer frauds statute, which says you can't be deceptive and cause harm to consumers in the state.
00:05:33.420And the theory was, according to the attorney general, that these that met Instagram and Facebook were breeding grounds for sexual predators and that they were willfully concealing these dangers from those consumers.
00:05:46.780the jury clearly agreeing and finding them liable, again, this is civil, and to the tune of
00:05:52.040significant civil penalties, which are $5,000 per violation. So that requires a showing of
00:05:58.380willful conduct, Yaz, which means that it was done purposely for the point of maximizing
00:06:02.720profits. After less than a day of deliberations, the jury finding Metta committed tens of thousands
00:06:09.260of violations. Here, the judge reading part of the verdict. In accordance with the civil penalty
00:06:15.520the instruction and the instructions as a whole, how many willful violations did Metta commit
00:06:21.880by engaging in unfair or deceptive trade practice? The jury's answer is 37,500.
00:06:31.020Metta responding to the verdict in a statement, quote,
00:06:33.560we respectfully disagree with the verdict and will appeal. A.G. Torres yesterday on the Today
00:06:38.820Show reacting to the verdict. It should be a clear signal to everyone in this space and to
00:06:45.000Mr. Zuckerberg in particular, that enough is enough. It's time to change the way they do
00:06:49.640business. AG Torres's office also pursuing a similar case against Snapchat parent company
00:06:55.340Snap, which is currently in the discovery phase. New polling now signaling growing public skepticism
00:07:03.340over the U.S. military's Operation Epic Fury in Iran. A survey from Pew Research finding a majority
00:07:09.780of Americans disapprove of President Trump's handling of the conflict, 61% disapproving
00:07:15.720compared to 37% who approve. The poll, conducted from March 16th through the 22nd, showing just
00:07:23.02038% of Americans believe launching the operation was the right decision, while 59% say it was
00:07:29.620wrong. And on the question of how the war is going, more Americans say not well, 45% compared
00:07:36.420to just 25% who say it's going very well or extremely well. The divide remaining sharply
00:07:42.560partisan. 90% of Democrats disapproving. Among Republicans, just 69% approve of the president's
00:07:49.300handling of the conflict. On Tuesday, the New York Times reporting the United States sent Iran
00:07:54.020a 15-point peace proposal aimed at ending the war. The Times noting it did not obtain a copy
00:08:00.220of the plan, but citing officials familiar with the proposal who say it broadly addresses Iran's
00:08:05.760ballistic missile and nuclear programs. Yesterday, Iran's foreign minister telling state media
00:08:10.780the country does not intend to enter negotiations with the United States,
00:08:15.000but confirming that an American proposal to end the war is now under review by senior leadership
00:08:20.540in Tehran. At the White House yesterday, Press Secretary Caroline Levitt pushing back on reports
00:08:25.820that talks may be stalling. Talks continue. They are productive, as the president said on Monday,
00:08:31.020and they continue to be. However, I saw a 15-point plan that was floated in the media.
00:08:37.200I would caution reporters in this room from reporting about speculative points or speculative
00:08:42.620plans from anonymous sources. The White House never confirmed that full plan. There are elements
00:08:47.920of truth to it, but some of the stories I read were not entirely factual. So I am not going to
00:08:53.280negotiate on behalf of the president here at the podium. What I will tell you is these talks are
00:08:57.800ongoing. We're not going to get into the nitty-gritty details that have been exchanged
00:09:02.100between the United States and Iran at this time. But just hours later, a direct contradiction from
00:09:08.020Tehran. According to the Associated Press, Iranian former minister Abbas Araghtri saying, quote,
00:09:13.620no negotiations have happened with the enemy until now, and we do not plan on any negotiations.
00:09:20.480Oh boy. On the Hill, Pentagon officials briefing lawmakers on the operation.
00:09:25.600According to Wall Street Journal reporter Alex Ward, at least three congressional Republicans,
00:09:30.440including the chairs of the House and Senate Armed Services Committees, strongly hinting
00:09:34.140that a ground operation could potentially be underway soon.
00:09:37.640This coming amid reports that the military is preparing to deploy at least 1,000 paratroopers
00:11:36.500Anyone who searches for freedom can always find a home here.
00:11:39.380But that freedom's a precious thing, and we defend it vigorously.
00:11:43.880You cross the border illegally, we'll find you.
00:11:46.820That ad blitz drawing bipartisan scrutiny on Capitol Hill, with even Republican Senator John Kennedy pressing Noam about it during a recent hearing.
00:11:55.180No, ma'am, I'm asking you, sorry to interrupt, but the president approved ahead of time you spending $220 million running TV ads across the country in which you are featured prominently.
00:12:10.540Yes, sir. We went through the legal processes. Did it correct?
00:12:13.280Did the president know you were going to do this?
00:12:16.820Now, the contracting process behind that spending reportedly facing deeper scrutiny.
00:12:22.760According to the Daily Mail, senior DHS officials say the department's inspector general has opened an investigation into how major contracts were approved, including no-bid deals worth billions.
00:12:34.940Investigators reportedly ordering dozens of current and former officials, including members of Noam's inner circle, to preserve communications like emails, texts, and phone records.
00:12:45.220The probe extending beyond the ad campaign, focusing on a broader pattern of contract approvals tied directly to Noem's office.
00:12:54.080During her tenure, Noem implementing a policy requiring personal approval for expenses totally more than $100,000.
00:13:01.200The Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General has not accused anyone of a crime, and the investigation remains ongoing.
00:13:08.700But according to the Daily Mail, some contractors told White House officials that Lewandowski allegedly sought financial incentives tied to contract access, referred to as the Lewandowski tax.
00:13:21.100Claims he denies. Lewandowski responding to the Daily Mail's reporting calling it, quote, fake news.
00:13:26.820The Daily Mail says it contacted Nome, the White House, and DHS for comment. No response as a publication.
00:13:33.440We also reached out to the White House and have not yet heard back.
00:13:36.740If investigators ultimately find evidence of criminal wrongdoing, the case could be referred to the Department of Justice for possible prosecution.
00:13:45.960A Florida State House seat flips in President Trump's own backyard, highlighting what Democrats hope is a shift in momentum heading into 2026.
00:13:55.920In a trio of special elections in deep red Florida Tuesday night, Democrats scoring two big wins.
00:14:02.240Republicans holding on to one state House seat.
00:14:04.940Democrat Brian Nathan defeating Republican Josie Tomko in a narrow upset,
00:14:10.160winning a Tampa area seat in the state Senate by just over 400 votes.
00:14:14.760Nathan, a Navy veteran, flipping a seat Republicans carried by about 10 points just two years ago,
00:14:20.520despite a sizable GOP voter registration advantage.
00:14:23.760Elsewhere in the state, Democrats flipping the Palm Beach County House District
00:14:27.660containing President Trump's Mar-a-Lago home and club.
00:14:30.920Territory President Trump carried by about 10 points in 2024.
00:14:35.880Democrat Emily Gregory, an Army wife who runs a women's gym,
00:14:40.100centering her campaign on that familiar Democrat message,
00:14:43.300affordability, zeroing in on housing, health care, and insurance costs.
00:14:48.280Gregory defeating Trump-endorsed Republican John Maples for the open seat by about three points.
00:14:54.420Gregory speaking to CNN Tuesday night after the victory.
00:14:57.680Since President Trump's term started, the Democrats have flipped more than 20 legislative seats.
00:15:03.560You're just adding to that. How does that feel?
00:15:06.040I think it's a real reaction to the current policies at the national and state level.
00:15:12.440And I think that is a clear indication from voters it's the wrong track.
00:15:16.340And go ahead, legislatures, go ahead, representatives, focus on property insurance,
00:15:21.860health care, education, focus on the things that Floridians care about.
00:15:25.500Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee President Heather Williams telling the AP,
00:15:30.080quote, if Mar-a-Lago is vulnerable, imagine what's possible this November.
00:15:35.340Williams going on to say Tuesday's race was the 29th seat that Democrats have flipped from
00:15:40.220Republican control since President Trump took office. Meanwhile, Republican Hillary
00:15:44.600Hawley handily defeating Democrat Edwin Perez in House District 51, covering the area between
00:15:50.320Tampa and Orlando. That'll do it for your AM update. I'm Emily Dreschinski, host of After
00:15:58.100Party. Catch The Megyn Kelly Show live on SiriusXM's The Megyn Kelly Channel 111 at Noon East
00:16:03.180on YouTube.com slash Megyn Kelly and all podcast platforms.