A few months ago, I wrote an open letter to Kaley Glenn-Mills, the plaintiff in the recent bellwether case against Meta, Google, Snap, and TikTok.
I never expected her to read it.
I wrote it because I wanted to thank her.
In it, I thanked her for the courage it took to stand up to some of the largest technology companies in the world. I also wrote that I hoped one day she would tell her story in her own words — through a book, an interview, or simply by living her life on her own terms.
This week, she did.
After her first public interview, with Bloomberg, one sentence stayed with me:
“Even now, even after the lawsuit, I’m still addicted,” she says. “I’m still scrolling my life away.”
The thing is, that wasn’t the headline, but I believe it was the story.
For years, the conversation around social media has been divided into familiar camps. Some argue that parents simply need to set better boundaries. Others insist that teenagers should exercise more self-control. Still others question whether social media is really harmful at all, whether it causes harm or whether other factors are at play.
Then came Kaley Glenn-Mills.
As a teenager, she became one of the young plaintiffs whose lawsuit against the major social media platforms helped reshape the national conversation about social media and children. Her case drew attention to internal company documents, sparked public debate, and helped move digital well-being from a niche concern into mainstream discussion.
Her simple admission deserves our attention because it reminds us that this conversation has never really been about willpower.
If understanding how something works were enough to overcome it, none of us would ever eat junk food, procrastinate, or lose track of time spent online. Knowledge helps, but it doesn’t erase habits that have been reinforced thousands of times over.
That’s especially true for children and teenagers, whose brains are still developing while they navigate platforms built by some of the world’s most sophisticated behavioral scientists, designers, and engineers.
When the young woman who helped change the conversation around children’s online safety admits she still feels the pull, perhaps it’s time to stop asking, “Why can’t kids just put the phone down?”
That’s the wrong question.
A better question is why we’ve expected them to be able to.
At Ready Set Screen, we aren’t interested in blaming children — or parents. Most families are doing the best they can in an environment unlike anything previous generations have faced.
Instead, we believe understanding should come before judgment.
Healthy digital habits aren’t built through shame. They’re built through conversations, thoughtful boundaries, moments of connection, and recognizing that technology is intentionally designed to compete for our attention.
Kaley Glenn-Mills’ story doesn’t end with a courtroom victory. In many ways, it begins with an honest confession.
When I wrote that letter a few months ago, I hoped we’d eventually hear Kaley’s story in her own words.
This week, we did.
Sometimes the bravest thing a person can say isn’t, “I won.” It’s, “I’m still struggling.”
Thank you, Kaley, for telling the rest of the story.
Jennifer Berger is the Executive Director of Ready Set Screen.
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