California Joins 45 Other States in Amicus Brief for TikTok Probe

California Attorney General Rob Bonta (D) joined 45 other states Sunday, filing an amicus brief supporting Tennessee’s motion for a court order requiring TikTok to produce subpoenaed materials and evidence as part of nationwide investigations into its role in a growing youth mental health crisis. The petition alleges the company has failed to preserve potentially relevant evidence, including internal employee chat messages, and is hampering the investigation of Tennessee, California and other states. “We know that social media is taking a devastating toll on young people’s mental health and well-being, and through our investigation we are getting a clearer sense of TikTok’s role,” said Bonta. The states “have good reason to believe that TikTok’s unfair and deceptive conduct has fueled an ongoing crisis in the mental health of children and teens,” said the brief. TikTok “failed to respond adequately” to the states’ requests for information as part of the multistate investigation, “withholding and obscuring information” that’s critical to their understanding of the conduct at issue and impeding their ability to protect their citizens, it said.