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(NEW YORK) — For months, sky-high prices have pummeled the budgets of everyday Americans.

But many have offset the damage, at least in part, with wage increases driven by high demand for workers and resilient consumer spending. In short, strong pockets of the economy have blunted the worst effects of severe inflation.

But the economy will likely cool off in the coming months as the Federal Reserve raises borrowing costs through a series of interest rate hikes — an effort to tame inflation by slowing down the economy and eating away at demand. If the policy works, it will dial back inflation while preserving a stable level of economic growth and low unemployment, experts told ABC News.

But an unsuccessful series of rate hikes could fail to reduce prices while dramatically slowing the economy, experts said. Such an outcome would bring about stagflation — a mix of the words stagnation and inflation — which describes an economy with low growth and high prices. In other words, the high prices remain, but the lifeline of elevated income disappears.

“Stagflation is basically the worst of all worlds,” Veronika Dolar, a professor of economics at Long Island-based State University of New York Old Westbury, told ABC News. “It’s the place you definitely don’t want to be.”

What is stagflation?

Usually, in good economic times, low unemployment forces employers to raise wages so they can retain or attract workers, which heightens consumer demand and steepens price increases. Conversely, a slow economy typically results in stagnant wages, reduced demand, and slashed prices, the latter of which helps to relieve the financial strain for those who lose their jobs or receive diminished pay, Dolar said.

On rare occasions, however, high inflation persists even as the economy slows and unemployment rises, resulting in stagflation, she said.

No single economic authority formally decides whether stagflation has occurred, unlike a period of recession, which the National Bureau of Economic Research determines, Campbell Harvey, a professor of finance at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, told ABC News.

The last major bout of stagflation took place in the 1970s, when an oil shortage sent gas and other related prices soaring as it simultaneously dragged down economic output. But the crisis of the 1970s offers few lessons for the current moment, since the U.S. economy is far less reliant on gas expenditures and foreign oil, Harvey said.

Instead, present-day inflation is owed to generous central bank and Congressional policies in response to the pandemic, which flooded the economy with money, spiked demand and exacerbated a supply chain bottleneck, Harvey said. Moreover, the price crunch has intensified amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine, he added.

Some economists, like Dolar, believe we’re already in a period of stagflation. She noted that the U.S. gross domestic product shrank at an annual rate of 1.4% over the first three months of this year, even as inflation remained historically high. But Harvey disagrees, saying stagflation hasn’t arrived but poses a real threat.

Why stagflation matters

Stagflation hurts people in two different ways, Harvey told ABC News.

“One, the stuff you’re buying is more expensive,” he said. “And two, you have less income.”

Echoing the sentiment, Dolar said: “You’re already on your knees, struggling, and you get kicked in your gut.”

The lack of purchasing power ripples through the economy, denting business revenue and draining savings, Harvey said.

Stagflation offers no easy solutions, since generous fiscal policy or low borrowing costs may juice the economy but also risk raising inflation, while increased borrowing costs could bring down inflation but risk slowing growth even further, Dolar said.

The treacherous economic moment calls for financial prudence, Harvey said.

“Now is not the time to max out your credit card to go for a vacation,” he said. “Now is not the time for a small business to go to the bank and bet the business to do an expansion.”

“Now is the time for risk management,” he added.

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(NEW YORK) — Global stocks tumbled and the S&P 500 closed in bear market territory Monday as fears over inflation rattle investors around the world.

The S&P 500 closed down 151 points, or 3.88%, meaning it’s down 21.3% since its high on Jan. 3. The Dow was down 876 points (2.79%) and the Nasdaq dropped 530 points (4.68%).

On Friday, investors were disappointed to learn that inflation is moving in the wrong direction. U.S. consumer prices surged 8.6% year-over-year in May, to a fresh 40-year high, led by higher prices for energy, food and housing. For the first time in history, a gallon of regular gas now costs $5 on average nationwide, according to AAA, and experts predict gas prices could average $6 a gallon by August.

“Any talk that we are at peak inflation has to be tabled at least until prices stop rising,” said David Nelson, chief strategist at Belpointe Asset Management.

The worse-than-expected inflation report has investors raising their bets on more aggressive interest rate increases from the Federal Reserve, possibly as soon as the central bank’s policy-setting meeting this week.

According to the CME FedWatch Tool, there is now about a 25% chance that the Fed will raise short-term interest rates by three-quarters of a point at the end of Wednesday’s policy meeting as the Fed ratchets up its fight against high inflation.

The likelihood of a half point rate hike at the Fed’s September meeting has now jumped to 50%, up from 25% before Friday’s inflation report.

“The debate continues over whether the Fed can slow inflation using its many monetary policy tools without pushing the economy into a recession,” Art Hogan, chief market strategist at National Securities, told ABC News. “Raising rates by three-quarters or even one percentage point on Wednesday would send a strong message that this Fed is willing to do what needs to be done to get inflation moving in the right direction.”

Inflation fears have sparked a broad-based selloff on Wall Street that has spread beyond stocks to the bond market and cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin, the biggest cryptocurrency, traded below $24,000, down nearly 14% in just 24 hours.

Despite this year’s rapid stock market selloff, strategists at Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs said the market does not fully reflect the risks facing the economy.

“The Equity Risk Premium does not reflect the risks to growth, which are increasing due to margin pressure and weaker demand as the consumer decides to hunker down,” Morgan Stanley strategists, led by Michael Wilson, wrote in a note on Monday.

If the S&P 500 closes Monday’s trading session with a decline of more than 1.3%, the index would be in a bear market, defined as a 20% drop from a recent high. The technology-heavy Nasdaq-100 slipped into a bear market in March.

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(NEW YORK) — The latest supply shortage to hit stores in the United States is disproportionately impacting women who menstruate.

Major retail chains across the country are reporting a shortage of tampon products as people have taken to social media to report their struggle to find products on store shelves.

“I had to go to three different stores to find the brand of #Tampons I like to use just to end up having to try another brand,” one woman shared on Twitter.

The shortage is reportedly stemming from a combination of factors, including staffing problems at factories, transportation delays and the rising cost of materials used to make the products, like plastics.

Walgreens told ABC News in a statement it is experiencing “some temporary brand-specific shortages in certain geographies.”

“Walgreens works diligently with our suppliers to ensure we have tampon supply available. However, similar to other retailers, we are experiencing some temporary brand-specific shortages in certain geographies,” the company said. “While we will continue to have products at shelf and online, it may only be in specific brands while we navigate the supply disruption. And, for customers looking for a specific product or brand, our website is up-to-date with the latest available store-level inventory information.”

CVS also confirmed a shortage in a statement to ABC News.

“We’re working with our suppliers to ensure we have an ample supply of feminine care products in our stores,” the company said. “In recent weeks, there have been instances when suppliers haven’t been able to fulfill the full quantities of orders placed. If a local store is temporarily out of specific products, we work to replenish those items as quickly as possible.”

Procter & Gamble, the manufacturer of Tampax, a leading tampon brand, told ABC News it is “producing tampons 24/7” to meet the demand.

“We understand it is frustrating for consumers when they can’t find what they need. We can assure you this is a temporary situation, and the Tampax team is producing tampons 24/7 to meet the increased demand for our products,” the company said in a statement. “We are working with our retail partners to maximize availability, which has significantly increased over the last several months.”

Procter & Gamble told Time magazine earlier this month that it saw a major spike in sales after launching an ad campaign with comedian Amy Schumer in July 2020.

“Retail sales growth has exploded,” a Procter & Gamble spokeswoman told the magazine.

Schumer, who shared publicly that she underwent surgery last year to remove her uterus due to endometriosis, responded on Instagram, writing, “Whoa I don’t even have a uterus.”

Amid the ongoing shortage, the average price for tampons and other menstrual products has also risen.

The price of tampons rose by nearly 10% and the price of menstrual pads by more than 8% through May, according to Bloomberg, citing NielsenIQ data.

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(NEW YORK) — Global stocks tumbled and the S&P 500 opened in bear market territory Monday as fears over inflation rattle investors around the world.

On Friday, investors were disappointed to learn that inflation is moving in the wrong direction. U.S. consumer prices surged 8.6% year-over-year in May, to a fresh 40-year high, led by higher prices for energy, food and housing. For the first time in history, a gallon of regular gas now costs $5 on average nationwide, according to AAA, and experts predict gas prices could average $6 a gallon by August.

“Any talk that we are at peak inflation has to be tabled at least until prices stop rising,” said David Nelson, chief strategist at Belpointe Asset Management.

The worse-than-expected inflation report has investors raising their bets on more aggressive interest rate increases from the Federal Reserve, possibly as soon as the central bank’s policy-setting meeting this week.

According to the CME FedWatch Tool, there is now about a 25% chance that the Fed will raise short-term interest rates by three-quarters of a point at the end of Wednesday’s policy meeting as the Fed ratchets up its fight against high inflation.

The likelihood of a half point rate hike at the Fed’s September meeting has now jumped to 50%, up from 25% before Friday’s inflation report.

“The debate continues over whether the Fed can slow inflation using its many monetary policy tools without pushing the economy into a recession,” Art Hogan, chief market strategist at National Securities, told ABC News. “Raising rates by three-quarters or even one percentage point on Wednesday would send a strong message that this Fed is willing to do what needs to be done to get inflation moving in the right direction.”

Inflation fears have sparked a broad-based selloff on Wall Street that has spread beyond stocks to the bond market and cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin, the biggest cryptocurrency, traded below $24,000, down nearly 14% in just 24 hours.

Despite this year’s rapid stock market selloff, strategists at Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs said the market does not fully reflect the risks facing the economy.

“The Equity Risk Premium does not reflect the risks to growth, which are increasing due to margin pressure and weaker demand as the consumer decides to hunker down,” Morgan Stanley strategists, led by Michael Wilson, wrote in a note on Monday.

If the S&P 500 closes Monday’s trading session with a decline of more than 1.3%, the index would be in a bear market, defined as a 20% drop from a recent high. The technology-heavy Nasdaq-100 slipped into a bear market in March.

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(NEW YORK) — Isaac Marchionna had always been a loyal SUV owner until he upgraded his Toyota 4Runner to a Ford F-150 Raptor, a massive truck with 450 horsepower and 510 lb-ft of torque, three years ago.

Marchionna, who lives in Oregon, originally bought the $72,000 pickup to go off-roading in the Baja California desert. He soon realized that the Raptor had all the creature comforts he sought in a daily driver.

“It’s aggressive and can bomb through a desert … but drives like a big car, handles very easily and is a very plush ride,” he told ABC News. “Just a pleasant driving experience around town.”

Trucks have definitely become the “it” vehicle in the U.S., according to Ivan Drury, a senior manager at Edmunds. They now come equipped with features that once made luxury vehicles stand out. Plus, towing capabilities and bed size have increased in the latest generations.

“Automakers are adding everything — heated and ventilated seats in the front and rear, 360-degree cameras, adaptive cruise control,” Drury told ABC News. “Trucks make your life easier and are more practical than an SUV.”

Sales of trucks have exploded in recent years. They account for 20% of the U.S. automotive market, up from 13% in 2012, according to Edmunds data. Prices have also skyrocketed: the average transaction price of a truck in 2005 was $29,390. Today, consumers are spending $54,564 on average, though trucks can easily top out at — or exceed — six figures.

“I used to think spending $50K or $60K on a truck was outrageous. Now there are $100K pickups,” Tony Quiroga, editor-in-chief of Car and Driver, told ABC News. “Automakers keep producing models that are more and more expensive and there doesn’t seem to be a limit to the appetite.”

When General Motors opened reservations for its $112,595 GMC Edition 1 Hummer EV pickup last October, all units were sold out within 10 minutes, the company said. The muscular EV, a modern take on the former gas-guzzling ute, still commands attention from motorists with its bold, athletic exterior design. The Hummer’s three electric motors and battery pack produce 1,000 hp and 1,200 lb-ft of torque. The truck’s engineers and designers, however, paid as much attention to the interior and ride quality as the insane performance numbers.

Inside are crisp graphics on two large screens and multiple storage cubbies to hold items. GM said 70% of drivers who made a reservation are new to EVs.

“The way we’ve executed this truck … anyone could drive this,” Brian Malczewski, lead exterior designer of the Hummer EV, told ABC News. “All my friends and family just loved it, regardless of gender.”

Automakers have made trucks so attractive to nontraditional owners — roomy cabins, massage seats, 14-inch screens — that a growing number of families and women are choosing them over SUVs as their primary vehicle, said Andre Smirnov, managing editor at TFLtruck.com. Trucks are no longer utilitarian vehicles with two doors and a flatbed, he pointed out.

“They’re more capable off-road, more maneuverable … and some have noise cancellation,” Smirnov told ABC News. “A truck 20 years ago would rattle and be loud. Now it’s as quiet as a whisper inside.”

He added, “A pickup truck lets a person or family have the ability to do anything or go anywhere. Trucks can absolutely be a status symbol.”

Trucks have an average mpg of 17, according to government data. Quiroga sees America’s fascination with them screeching to a halt if fuel prices keep climbing higher.

“With gas at $4 to $7 a gallon, I don’t know how long the demand will last,” he conceded. “When you add the cost of gasoline to the monthly payment, a truck is outrageously expensive.”

Smirnov said high fuel prices may push some wannabe truck owners toward electrics like the Hummer, Rivian R1T, Ford F-150 Lightning or smaller pickups with hybrid powertrains.

The Ram 1500 TRX — a beast of a truck with 35-inch tires, 702 hp, 650 lb-ft of torque and a 6.2L supercharged Hemi V8 engine — can launch from 0 to 60 in 4.5 seconds or cruise comfortably at legal speeds like a family hauler. The $72,390 truck can easily hit $100,000 with added options and towing packages and gets a combined 12 mpg rating from the EPA.

“Demand for the TRX has never been higher — it’s in incredible demand,” Brant Combs, senior manager for Ram 1500, told ABC News. “More people want a TRX than ever before.”

The TRX’s “wild” performance numbers may be a draw for some drivers, Combs acknowledged. It’s the truck’s everyday abilities, however, that really sell the TRX, he said: the prodigious storage space, multiple USB adapters, rear reclining seats and premium leather, to name a few.

“It has the comfort and safety features … a great truck for suburban daily use,” Combs said.

Toyota and Chevrolet recently launched two new trucks to get a bigger piece of the red-hot market. The revamped Tundra, available in seven trim levels, has a starting price of $35,950. Customers can opt for the fully loaded Capstone model ($74,230) that features 22-inch machine-finish alloy wheels, walnut wood trim, acoustic glass on the front door and leather trimmed 10-way power-adjustable front seats.

“We’re thrilled with the response from customers on Tundra. We have sold every Tundra that has been built so far,” a Toyota spokesperson told ABC News.

Chevrolet’s formidable Silverado Crew 1500 ZR2, with its naturally aspirated 6.2L V8 engine (420 hp, 460 lb-ft of torque), starts at $71,000 and has many of the perks drivers are requesting: four-wheel drive, head-up display, a rear camera mirror, adaptive cruise control and a 13.4-inch infotainment system that’s compatible with Amazon Alexa.

Ford, which started the high-performance truck craze a decade ago with the F-150 Raptor, confirmed that a Raptor R version with even more power and torque will soon go into production.

Demand for trucks has even been rising in suburbs and cities like San Francisco, pockets of the country that have long preferred EVs and SUVs to brawny work-type vehicles, Drury said. On his commute to Edmunds’ office in Santa Monica, California, Drury recalled one residence that had a Rolls-Royce parked next to an F-150 Raptor.

“The number of lifestyle truck owners is up across the board,” Drury said. “A lot of it is bragging rights. This is an expanding market — not a contracting one.”

Drury himself joined the truck bandwagon in 2020, selling his SUV for one. He recently convinced his brother to trade in his Toyota Camry for a Raptor.

“The stigma is gone. Trucks ride so much better than they used to,” he said. “Once you purchase a pickup, it’s very difficult to go back. I am 100% a truck guy now.”

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(NEW YORK) — Thousands of employees in the U.K. will be working four days a week for the next six months, in the largest such pilot program to date.

ABC News’ “Start Here” podcast reported that 70 companies, ranging from fish-and-chip shops to digital marketing companies, will be taking part in this study, which is being coordinated by three non-profits, a labor think-tank and researchers at three universities in the U.S. and U.K.

The more than 3,300 workers participating in the study will be paid the same amount and be expected to maintain the same level of productivity while working 80% of their normal hours, according to 4 Day Week Global, which is coordinating the experiment. The number of hours worked will be less.

There are multiple explanations for why companies might want to try a four-day workweek.

For starters, “the labor market is so tight now, employers will offer almost anything to get to keep people,” Daniel Hamermesh, professor emeritus of economics at University of Texas and author of a new study about the rise of the four-day workweek, told ABC News.

The pandemic, subsequent rise of work-from-home culture, as well as historic labor shortages have led companies to try different techniques to entice workers: more benefits, wage increases, remote work flexibility and a shorter workweek are some of them.

Hamermesh’s research has shown that the fraction of U.S. employees working four days a week has been steadily growing and tripled over the past half century.

“People want more leisure,” he said, “and they’re willing to work more each day if they can get fewer days of work.”

Hamermesh is skeptical that workers can maintain the same levels of productivity working just 80% of the time, but acknowledges they might not have always been 100% productive in the first place, noting, “goofing off on the job is not a bad thing, it’s relaxing and reduces stress.”

News reports about similar programs that have been run in Iceland, New Zealand, Scotland and the United States, yet Hamermesh has not seen anything he would consider an official study, including this most recent one.

Hamermesh notes there’s no control group, which would compare productivity levels working a 5 day work-week with a 4 day work-week.

This U.K. program “sounds like it’s a demonstration, not an experiment,” he says.

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(WASHINGTON) — Inflation reaccelerated in May, rising at the highest level seen in four decades, according to data released by the federal government on Friday.

The consumer price index, or CPI, stood at 8.6% year over year in May, a significant increase from 8.3% the month prior, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That is the largest 12-month increase since the period ending December 1981.

On a monthly basis, the consumer price index rose 1% in May, far outpacing the 0.3% rise seen in April, according to the bureau.

Energy, food and housing costs contributed to the surge in prices. The new data arrives a day after the nationwide average price for a gallon of gas reached $5, according to GasBuddy.

The core consumer price index, which strips out food and energy costs, rose 0.6% on a monthly basis in May, the same increase that it saw in April, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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(NEW YORK) — Federal prosecutors in Manhattan, New York have started a criminal investigation into Wells Fargo to determine whether the nation’s third largest bank’s hiring practices broke the law, a source briefed on the investigation confirmed to ABC News.

The criminal investigation follows a report last month in The New York Times, in which current and former employees said they were told by superiors to interview women and people of color even though the hiring decision had already been made.

The allegation is similar to that of Brian Flores and other black football coaches who have accused the NFL of conducting sham interviews to satisfy diversity requirements with no intention of actually hiring someone of color. The NFL has defended its hiring practices.

The investigation into Wells Fargo is in its early stages and no charging decisions have been made, the source said, adding that the investigation is being led by a recently created civil rights unit within the office.

A spokesman for Damian Williams, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, declined to comment.

The New York Times based its story, in part, on former Wells Fargo employee Joe Bruno who said bank managers interviewed applicants considered diverse for jobs already promised to others. The Times reported Bruno was fired after speaking out.

In the United States, Wells Fargo employs more than 235,000 people, 13% of whom are Black, according to 2020 company statistics. Another 17% are Latino and 55% are white.

“No one should be put through an interview without a real chance of receiving an offer, period. The diverse slate guidelines we put in place are meant to increase diverse representation across the company and we can see meaningful results in our hiring data since 2020,” Wells Fargo said in a statement provided to ABC News that did not directly address the reported opening of a federal criminal investigation.

“At the same time, it’s important that implementation of our guidelines is consistent. Earlier this week, the company temporarily paused the use of its diverse slate guidelines. During this pause, the company is conducting a review so that hiring managers, senior leaders and recruiters fully understand how the guidelines should be implemented – and so we can have confidence that our guidelines live up to their promise,” the statement continued.

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(NEW YORK) — As summer travel booms and prices for gas, hotel rooms and flights skyrocket, taking to the sea this summer season could save travelers big bucks.

Despite rising prices in most sectors, Chris Gray Faust, the managing editor of online industry publication The Cruise Critic, says prices for cruises “are some of the lowest that we’ve seen in a very long time.”

Right now, a five-day cruise around the Caribbean costs approximately $500 per person, Gray Faust said. Some experts says that’s a great way to get big bang for your buck.

“That works out to about $100 per day, including lodging, meals and entertainment,” Gray Faust told ABC News. “And with the way that land vacations have been … [with] airfares more expensive, you’re really hard pressed to find a vacation for a similar price on land.”

Some of the best deals right now include a three-day Carnival cruise from Miami to the Bahamas, for just $118 per person; a four-night Royal Caribbean cruise from Miami to the Bahamas starting at $198 per person; and a seven-day Holland America cruise in Alaska at $399 per person.

Gray Faust also recommended checking for additional deals that could make a cruise an even better buy.

“Not only are the fares low, but a lot of the cruise lines are putting in a lot of extra value type of things — like, they’re throwing in free gratuities, free Wi-Fi, free drink packages, things like that,” Gray Faust said.

Compared to skyrocketing prices for hotels and airfare, cruises are, for the time being, a steal. According to Hopper, an online travel booking platform, hotels are currently averaging $204 a night, up from $150 per night in 2021.

On top of that, Hopper estimates the average price of a round-trip domestic flight at around $397 and more than $1,000 for a round-trip international flight.

As pandemic-related restrictions relax, cruise lines are looking to fill their cabins and sail more of their ships, which lowers costs as well.

“What that means for [people] looking for a good vacation this summer is that there’s plenty of room on these cruise ships because there’s more ships back, there’s more rooms available and the prices are lower,” Gray Faust said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention removed its risk assessment of cruise ship travel in late March of 2022, but still advises travelers to be aware of a particular ship’s risk designations and stay up to date with their vaccinations. The agency has also recommended purchasing travel insurance before a trip and has advised travelers to continue masking up indoors.

Though pandemic protocols have eased on board most ships, passengers should still check with their cruise line ahead of time to see whether there are specific vaccine or testing requirements.

Anyone with COVID-19 symptoms, or those awaiting COVID-19 test results, should not travel, according to the CDC.

Travelers hoping to snag a good deal should move soon. According to Gray Faust, prices will begin to increase as the holiday season approaches this fall.

“Summer is a good time for a value vacation like this, partially because of hurricane season,” Gray Faust said, adding that “we should see these prices last until October” and that “now is that time to go.”

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(NEW YORK) — The parents of a now 19-year-old New York woman are suing Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, alleging their daughter developed an Instagram addiction that led to an eating disorder and other mental health struggles.

In the personal injury lawsuit, filed Monday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, Kathleen and Jeff Spence of Long Island allege that their daughter Alexis began using Instagram at age 11 — two years younger than Instagram’s required minimum age of 13 — without their knowledge.

They claim she then developed an addiction to the social media app, which allegedly caused injuries including “addiction, anxiety, depression, self-harm, eating disorders, and, ultimately, suicidal ideation,” according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit, which was filed by the Social Media Victims Law Center, claims that as Alexis’ parents, the Spences were “were emotionally and financially harmed by Meta’s addictive design and continued and harmful distribution and/or provision of multiple Instagram accounts to their minor child.”

“The fact that Alexis is here is truly a miracle because we fought tooth-and-nail for her,” Kathleen Spence told ABC News. “We did everything we possibly could for her. We got her the help that she needed on multiple levels, and there were times when we were very concerned for her safety.”

Alexis Spence told ABC News she created her first Instagram account at age 11 in order to interact with a popular online kids game at the time. Using her own tablet and then later a smartphone, as well as friends’ devices, to access Instagram, Alexis said her feed quickly became inundated with content related to eating disorders and self-harm

“When I’m 11 years old, what am I to do but keep looking at this content?” she said. “And when you’re being told every day, ‘This is how [to] be pretty … this is what you’re supposed to look like,’ what am I to think? I was a child.”

Kathleen Spence, who also has a 13-year-old son, described the changes she and her husband claimed they saw in their daughter in the years that followed.

“When Alexis first started going on Instagram without our consent or knowledge at 11 years old, we didn’t know what was going on,” she said. “We just know that our daughter was disappearing. Slowly, piece by piece, we were losing our confident, loving child, and she was becoming depressed, angry, withdrawn.”

In the lawsuit, the Spences allege that even as they got Alexis professional mental health treatment, they were not initially aware of the full impact of their daughter’s Instagram use.

They claim they connected the dots in 2021, when thousands of pages of internal Facebook documents were released by Frances Haugen, a former product manager at the tech company.

The documents Haugen shared were published by the Wall Street Journal and several other outlets in October 2021, and are collectively known as The Facebook Papers.

As ABC News reported last year, the documents showed Facebook had reportedly commissioned studies about and knew of the potential harm that negative or inflammatory content on its platforms was causing — including researchers’ findings that Instagram had made body image issues worse for 1 in 3 teens — but did not act to stop it.

In testimony to Congress last October, Haugen alleged that Facebook had disregarded concerns about the harmful effects their platforms could have on children’s mental health.

Kathleen Spence said that after reading the documents Haugen shared, she came to believe that there was not much she and her husband could have done to help Alexis.

“We did all we could,” she said. “We would encourage her to come downstairs. We ate dinner together as a family every night. We would have family outings on the weekend. We would take her places, but the phone and the social media was always there and it didn’t matter.”

She continued, “At the end of the day, my husband and I are one loving set of parents who are trying to keep our daughter safe from a multi-billion dollar company who was meeting behind closed doors to come up with ways to keep our children addicted to their products because they want to make money.”

In a response to Haugen’s congressional testimony last October, Meta issued a statement that characterized Haugen as “a former product manager at Facebook who worked for the company for less than two years, had no direct reports, never attended a decision-point meeting with C-level executives — and testified more than six times to not working on the subject matter in question.”

“We don’t agree with her characterization of the many issues she testified about,” the company said.

A spokesperson for Meta on Thursday declined to comment on the Spences’ lawsuit, citing it as “active litigation.”

The spokesperson highlighted general protections for kids they say are offered by Instagram, including age verification, parental controls, time control settings, default settings to provide more privacy, direct message restrictions between adults and teens, as well as in-app resources offering mental health support.

The Spences are being represented in the lawsuit by attorney Matthew Bergman, who in February filed a separate lawsuit against Meta and another social media company on behalf of a mother who claims the “defective design, negligence and unreasonable dangerous features” of the companies’ products allegedly led to her daughter’s death by suicide.

Bergman, founder of the Social Media Victims Law Center, told ABC News he believes social media companies, not individual parents, have the tools and the responsibility to make social media safer for kids.

“Phones are ubiquitous. Kids rely on their phones to get their homework assignments, to get their sports assignments and to get a ride home,” said Bergman. “To say that taking phones away is a realistic, viable solution, it’s not. Turn off the algorithms. Turn off the ability of kids to stay on all day and all night.”

In addition to calling on Instagram to make product changes to make the app safer for kids, the Spences’ lawsuit is asking for monetary damages, including Alexis’ “past and present” medical expenses and her “loss of future income and learning capacity.”

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